Long-time public servant Anthony Verrelli has been sworn in as the 15th Legislative District representative in the New Jersey General Assembly.
Verrelli, who was sworn in on August 5 at a ceremony in Hamilton Township, joins Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds Jackson in representing the 15th Legislative District. Verrelli is replacing former Assemblyman Reed Gusciora who stepped down last month after being elected mayor of the City of Trenton. Verrelli was sworn in by Reynolds-Jackson.
The 15th District covers East Amwell, Ewing, Hopewell Borough, Hopewell Township (Mercer), Lambertville, Lawrence (Mercer), Pennington, Trenton, West Amwell and West Windsor.
“I am honored and excited about the opportunity to continue my public service work as a member of the Legislature,” said Verrelli. “I am a life-long Mercer County resident. I have served in municipal and county government. I have more than 20 years of experience in labor and fighting for the rights of workers. I look forward to using these different experiences and working with my colleagues to serve the residents of the 15th Legislative District and the rest of the State.”
Verrelli, who resides in Hopewell Township with his wife and daughter, graduated from Notre Dame High School in Lawrence before working as a carpenter. While practicing his trade, Verrelli joined the Northeastern Regional Council of Carpenters, and quickly ascended through the ranks from organizer to currently serve as President of Carpenters Local Union 254.
For the past 25 years, Verrelli has fought for fair wages, good benefits, and worker protections for the thousands of members he has represented and worked to ensure that employees have the adequate compensation to be able to retire with dignity. Under his leadership, the Carpenters have also become one of the most diverse and gender balanced skilled labor unions.
While working as a carpenter and assuming various leadership positions within the union, Verrelli simultaneously took an active role in both local and county government.
Verrelli served on the Ewing Township Zoning Board from 2001 to 2004, later moving up to the Mercer County Planning board where he served from 2004 to 2008. He was appointed to the Mercer County Improvement Authority in 2008 and elected Vice Chairman in 2012. In 2016, Verrelli was elected to serve as a Mercer County Freeholder. He resigned from the Mercer County Freeholder Board in order to serve in the General Assembly.
Verrelli has been an active member in the addiction recovery and rehabilitation community for the past 25 years. Verrelli currently serves on the board of Recovery Advocates of America, which strives to provide education around the disease of addiction, tools to sustain recovery through engagement, and reduce the stigma of addiction within our community. He has served on various other boards and is involved with organizations such as Contact Mercer County and Farm Team.
Along with his busy career, Anthony has long included personal involvement in his community as an essential component of his life. As a member of the Hopewell Township Knights of Columbus, he has worked to help engage members of the community, families, and young people in charity and giving back to the community. In 2010, the Knights of Columbus at all levels of the organization raised and distributed $154 million to charity and rendered 70 million hours of volunteer service.
