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Yvonne M. Lopez
Yvonne M. Lopez
Member of the New Jersey Assembly; from the 19th District
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; January 9, 2018 Serving with Craig Coughlin
Preceded by	John Wisniewski
Personal details
Born	July 28, 1957 (age 67); Perth Amboy, New Jersey
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Rutgers University
Occupation	Administrator
Website	Legislative Website

Yvonne M. Lopez (born July 28, 1957) is an American politician from New Jersey. A resident of Perth Amboy, she has represented the 19th Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly as a member of the Democratic Party since January 9, 2018.

Early life and education

Lopez was born on July 28, 1957 in Perth Amboy, Middlesex County, New Jersey. She attended Rutgers University.^[2]

Career

Prior to entering politics, Lopez worked in the private sector. She served in the Community Relations department of Wachovia Bank for a period of 20 years from 1987 to 2007, eventually becoming a vice-president.^[3]

Lopez later became CEO and executive director of the Puerto Rican Association for Human Development (PRAHD).^[4] Under her leadership, the PRAHD worked with the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters to create a training program for underemployed and unemployed individuals.^[5]

In 2016, she was honored by the city of Perth Amboy for her work serving in the board of Perth Amboy's Business Improvement District (BID).^[4] As of 2023, she was a member of the New Jersey Puerto Rico Commission.^[6]

Member of the New Jersey Assembly (2018-present)

Lopez first ran for a seat in the New Jersey General Assembly in the 2017 election. She won the seat, which was relinquished by her predecessor John Wisniewski after he chose to run for Governor of New Jersey in the 2017 election.^[2] Lopez was reelected in the 2019, 2021, and 2023 elections.

Each district in the New Jersey Legislature is represented by one state senator and two members of the General Assembly Alongside with Lopez, the 19th District is represented in the current session by Senator Joe F. Vitale (D) and fellow assemblymember Craig Coughlin (D).

Tenure

In 2020, Lopez was appointed to serve as vice chair of the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators' Latino Voting and Elections Task Force.^[7]

In 2024, Lopez began preparing legislation to prohibit landlords operating in New Jersey from using rent-setting algorithms that increase costs for renters.^[3]

Committee memberships

In the 221st New Jersey Assembly session (2024-2024), she is chair of the Housing Committee, vice chair of the Community Development and Womens Affairs Committee, and a member of the Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee.^[2]

Electoral history

New Jersey General Assembly

19th Legislative District General Election, 2023^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Craig J. Coughlin (incumbent)	18,808	31.4
	Democratic	Yvonne Lopez (incumbent)	18,254	30.5
	Republican	Marilyn Colon	11,496	19.2
	Republican	Sam Raval	10,740	17.9
	Libertarian	David Diez	619	1.0
Total votes			59,917	100.0
	Democratic hold
	Democratic hold

New Jersey general election, 2021^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Craig Coughlin (Incumbent)	26,529	29.15
	Democratic	Yvonne Lopez (Incumbent)	26,057	28.63
	Republican	Anthony "Tony" Gallo	19,337	21.24
	Republican	Bruce Banko	19,098	20.98
Total votes			91,021	100.0

New Jersey general election, 2017^[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Craig Coughlin (Incumbent)	25,708	35.6	0.0
	Democratic	Yvonne Lopez	24,830	34.4	1.9
	Republican	Deepak Malhotra	10,709	14.8	0.0
	Republican	Amarjit K. Riar	9,436	13.1	0.2
	Quality of Life	William Cruz	1,488	2.1	N/A
Total votes			72,171	100.0

References

^ "Proud to be an American: Yvonne Lopez", Home News Tribune, July 4, 2007. Accessed January 24, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "I was born and raised in the city of Perth Amboy, but my parents came from Puerto Rico."
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Assemblywoman Yvonne Lopez (D), New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 23, 2024.
^ ^a ^b "The Voter's Self Defense System".
^ ^a ^b "Perth Amboy BID Honors Yvonne Lopez, former BID Board Member | The Amboy Guardian". June 24, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
^ Lopez, Yvonne (July 23, 2015). "Training program offers path to success". Courier News. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
^ "Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi Gets Rock Star Welcome in Atlantic City by NJ PR Commission - Front Runner New Jersey". Front Runner New Jersey. July 14, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
^ Biryukov, Nikita (January 21, 2020). "Lopez appointed to national Latino legislators elections task force". New Jersey Globe. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
^ "Candidates for General Assembly - For GENERAL ELECTION 11/07/2023 Election" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
^ "Official List, Candidates for General Assembly For GENERAL ELECTION 11/02/2021 Election" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
^ "2017-official-general-election-results-general-assembly.pdf" (PDF). New Jersey Secretary of State. Retrieved April 21, 2019.

External links

Legislative webpage

New Jersey General Assembly
Preceded by John Wisniewski	Member of the New Jersey General Assembly for the 19th District January 9, 2018–present With: Craig Coughlin	Succeeded by Incumbent