Loretta Weinberg
Loretta Weinberg (born February 6, 1935) is an American Democratic Party politician, who served as a member of the New Jersey Senate from 2005-2022, where she represented the 37th Legislative District.Weinberg was chosen by Democratic committee members in March 1992 to fill the seat vacated in the Assembly by D. Bennett Mazur, who had resigned due to illness.Kornacki identified a number of "potential successors" to Baer, including Hackensack Police Chief and former Assemblyman Charles "Ken" Zisa, who had briefly mounted a challenge to Baer's 2003 re-nomination before withdrawing it in what some have said was a deal brokered by Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman Joe Ferriero; Bergen County Freeholder Valerie Huttle; Englewood Mayor Michael Wildes; and Weinberg."But," wrote Kornacki, "whether Weinberg, who backed Zisa in his brief bid to topple Baer last year, does want it [the Senate seat] is an open question."On September 20, 2005, New Jersey Superior Court Judge Peter Doyne refused to interfere in what he held was a party matter and upheld the decision of the election mediator, Rep. Steve Rothman, to exclude the five ballots.On September 23, 2005, an Appellate Court panel sent the case back to Judge Doyne, ruling that he did have the authority to address a party issue and that the five uncounted ballots cast by Tenafly Democratic Committee members could be counted irrespective of the failure to file their names within the specified 30-day window.[6] On October 5, 2005, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that it would not hear an appeal from Ken Zisa and the Bergen County Democratic Organization.[9] In a deal brokered by Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine, Ferriero backed off the challenge and announced that he and the county party organization would endorse the three incumbents in the primary.[13] Weinberg lost $1.3 million in a retirement fund that had been invested through a Beverly Hills, California financial planner with Bernard Madoff, without her knowledge.[19] Weinberg engaged in a debate between herself and the other two major candidates for lieutenant governor, Kim Guadagno and Frank Esposito, at Monmouth University on October 8.