In an editorial, 32nd Legislative District Assembly candidate Jennie Pu expresses why she believes she would bring real representation to Trenton.
My name is Jennie Pu. I’m a PTA mom, a librarian, a longtime community builder—and I’m running for the New Jersey General Assembly in the 32nd District.
I’ve called Jersey City home for 20 years. My husband grew up here. His parents came as refugees and rebuilt their lives in this city, both becoming public school teachers.
He graduated from those same schools, and now we’re raising our own children here.
Like so many working families, this isn’t just where we live—it’s home. And it’s the grit, generosity, and heart of its people that make this community so special.
I believe what you’ve done before running for office says a lot about the kind of public servant you’ll be.
I’ve spent my career in service: as a teacher librarian in New Jersey’s public schools, Dean of Libraries at Hudson County Community College, and now as Director of the Hoboken
Public Library.
I’ve led teams of dedicated public servants to expand services, deliver innovative programs, build partnerships, and manage multi-million-dollar capital projects—transforming libraries into hubs that meet real community needs.
Working in libraries puts you in the middle of everyday life. I’ve helped students finish papers and parents apply for jobs.
I’ve sat with seniors navigating healthcare forms, and I’ve watched immigrants study for their citizenship tests. Libraries remain free and open to all, and a haven for those who need it most.
I don’t wait for change—I work to create it. I started the PTA at our neighborhood school where there wasn’t one and served as its founding president.
Together, we turned the school into a vibrant, welcoming place that families wanted to be part of, building a stronger connection between the school and the neighborhood.
Since then, I’ve helped nearby schools start their own PTAs using what we built as a model, and I’m proud to keep supporting that kind of grassroots change.
Through the PTA, we built an advocacy voice, one that’s still going strong today. I’ve spoken out at school board meetings for transparency, better staffing, and full funding.
I’ve brought those same concerns to City Council meetings because I believe working families deserve to be heard—especially when decisions are being made that affect our kids, our neighborhoods, and our future.
I launched New Jersey’s first Book Sanctuary, leading the fight against censorship and book bans to ensure our libraries remain places of access and inclusion.
What began in Hoboken sparked a groundswell, with the model now replicated all across New Jersey and in states like Kentucky, Maryland, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.
As Chair of the New Jersey Library Association’s Public Policy Committee, I brought that same urgency to Trenton, where I helped champion and pass the Freedom to Read Act, protecting every New Jerseyan’s right to access diverse ideas and stories.
When I knock on doors, I’m doing what I’ve always done: listening. Hearing what’s on your mind, and carrying those conversations forward. I’m running because we need bold, effective leadership that includes and delivers.
That means standing up for families facing rising costs and fighting for real property tax relief.
It means making sure every child has access to the services and support they need to thrive—like fully funded schools, updated buildings, and the kind of learning environments every family wants for their kids.
It means protecting the open spaces we love, like Liberty State Park, and pushing for smarter, greener infrastructure that reflects our values.
And it means ensuring that working families can afford to stay, with better transit, more housing near it, strong tenant protections, and forward-thinking investments in our communities.
These aren’t just policy issues—they’re personal. I’ve lived these challenges, and I’ve spent my career helping people navigate them.
Hudson County is full of everyday people doing extraordinary things. I want to bring that energy to the Statehouse. I’m not here to play politics—I’m here to get to work.
I’d be honored to earn your vote, and together we can shape a better future for all of us in Trenton.
Jennie Pu lives in Downtown Jersey City and is running on the Hudson County Democratic Organization’s slate in the June 10th primary.
Pretending like you’re just some grassroots activist and “not playing politics” when your entire campaign is backed by one of, if not the most, corrupt political machines in the country is insane.
Jenny, you could have run as an independent if you really wanted to make any of your experience matter, but as it stands nothing you’ve written or said during your entire campaign has indicated that you would be genuinely independent from the corrupt conservative corporate donors that fuel your campaign.
Walking the walk is more important than talking the talk, and walking with the HCDO is what has sullied not only your campaign, but your reputation. You cannot be so ignorant or so naive as to have been sold on the HCDO after what you say are decades of public service in Hudson County. The machine is infamous for their corruption and back door dealing, their true masters, their donors, are public record. How could you look at that and say: “sign me up”.
The truth is that Jenny Pu has benefitted from over $400,000 pumped in to support her, none of which she’s raised, by choosing to agree to be the HCDO’s candidate. The HCDO is funded by special interests — like the Turnpike $12 billion contracts lobby — that place their interests over the public’s interest.
Jenny’s biography is positive until her defining decision to accept the corruption associated with the HCDO.
Katie you are way too see through with these attacks. How about you address Ravi’s parking tickets? And his cocaine use.
Jennie Poo will never win. Who will we get to read queer books to our children and defend our asylum seeking books?? #Dreamers #NoBookIsIllegal
Way to be a bigoted jerk. Move to a red state chud.
The HCDO made a real Stinker!