Democratic boss George E. Norcross III says it’s time to let others lead in New Jersey

Democrat George E. Norcross III, one of New Jersey’s most powerful political bosses, says he’s stepping away from politics.

Norcross told Politico “it’s time for others to lead the party,” after a string of setbacks. A Norcross spokesman, Dan Fee, confirmed the Politico report in a statement to Gothamist.

In the Politico report, Norcross said that ever since his top lieutenant, former Senate President Steven Sweeney, lost his re-election bid in 2021, he has experienced a diminishment of his power. He was “involuntarily pushed to a different place” and has been “sitting in the backseat,” according to the Politico article.

Is he stepping down because he’s tired of controlling the billions of dollars in state, federal, and county grants or tax breaks he’s been controlling at least since Chris Christie?

Keith Benson, a resident, activist and senior fellow at Harvard University

Norcross, 67, runs a political machine in South Jersey that extended its power statewide and nationally over the last 20 years. He controlled the largest voting bloc in the New Jersey State Legislature, as well as key elected officials across the southern part of the state, including county commissioners, city council members and many other boards and public authorities.

He is the chairman of Cooper University Hospital, the largest employer in Camden and a major driver of downtown development. Norcross owns Conner Strong & Buckelew, an insurance agency that contracts with government entities across New Jersey.

He has come under scrutiny for $1.1 billion in economic development tax breaks connected to him, his business associates or his family. Gov. Phil Murphy, a fellow Democrat, created a task force to investigate the state tax break program, which resulted in a referral to the State Attorney General’s Office for a criminal investigation.

The tax breaks connected to Norcross were part of the focus of the inquiry, but the task force never released the names of companies that it referred for criminal investigation.

Norcross in the news

NJ Advance Media published a report 10 days ago, citing anonymous sources, that Camden City Hall has been hit with subpoenas relating to an investigation into Norcross business dealings on the Camden waterfront and the tax breaks.

Fee, a spokesman for Norcross, released a written statement in response to questions about whether Norcross’s decision to step away from politics is related to the investigation into the Camden waterfront.

“The award of Economic Opportunity Act incentives in Camden has been repeatedly and exhaustively reviewed, including by a special task force, the state, the Economic Development Authority and the media. Each and every time, there has been no wrongdoing found,” the statement said.

Norcross and his brother, Phil, a lobbyist and lawyer who benefitted from the tax break program, have not confirmed whether they are under investigation.

“While it is unclear what the Attorney General may be looking at, as neither George Norcross nor Phil Norcross have received a subpoena, nor has Conner Strong & Buckelew or Cooper University Health Care, there is no question the incentives have been a key part of the continued transformation of the city from America's poorest, most violent city into a place where there is new hope and opportunity,” the written statement said.

Micah Rasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics, says the Norcross announcement comes at an interesting time, with the primary for state legislative races just a month away and just days after news about the investigation into Norcross.

“Most immediately it means the legislators and candidates for whom he has been patron may be on their own to fund themselves in this year’s races,” Rasmussen said. “We know the political landscape in South Jersey has become less fertile for Democrats, and it may be an indication of the prospect for further losses.”

Rasmussen says Norcross’s legal problems could have given him the push. “The hope may be that prosecutors may declare their mission is accomplished or that they’ve already bagged their trophy, or that being removed from the sphere of public influence may simply buy some breathing room,” he said.

On the waterfront

The WNYC podcast Dead End found that a key developer on the Camden waterfront was blocked from obtaining permits and other city approvals after he had a fight with George Norcross over ownership and development rights.

Extensive reporting has detailed how Norcross and his business partners used Norcross’s political power to coerce other entities to give up their development rights on the Camden waterfront.

Norcross reached the zenith of his power during former Gov. Chris Christie’s term in office. Norcross, the most powerful Democrat in the state, and Christie, the most powerful Republican, passed a supercharged version of the tax break law that gave special benefits to Camden, Norcross's home turf. They also turned the Camden city police department over to the county sheriff and remade Camden city schools, converting a large portion of them to charter schools.

Norcross has always said he worked hard to improve and benefit the city of his birth, and many residents and elected officials agree with him.

Jeffrey Brenner, a doctor who worked for many years in Camden, told Dead End the development on the waterfront can only be viewed as an improvement for the city. “I was there when it was a field, and it was a field for years and years and years.”

Brenner lived in Camden and ran a clinic for Cooper University Hospital when the city was at its lowest. Norcross is the chairman of the hospital board.

“You can pull George apart about how he benefited from it, and that's fine," Brenner said. "You know, it's an interesting story once or twice. But the bigger question is: Is it appropriate to use tax breaks to develop and even out economic activity across a region? And the answer has got to be yes. I can't even imagine how else you’d move this place forward if you didn't do that.”

The tax breaks did not require any kind of community benefit agreement, but Norcross says his companies and many of the others have donated to programs that benefit Camden.

“As part of their commitment to Camden, Conner Strong and Cooper [Hospital] have been generous donors of millions of dollars to projects and programs, including job training for Camden residents, a health and athletic programs for youth, grants to community non-profits, and a new state-of-the -art K-12 neighborhood school district serving several thousand Camden students, among many other things," the statement said.

Grassroots activists in Camden have long fought to release the city from Norcross control. But the announcement was met with immediate suspicion.

“Is he stepping down because he’s tired of controlling the billions of dollars in state, federal and county grants or tax breaks he’s been controlling at least since Chris Christie?” said Keith Benson, a resident, activist and senior fellow at Harvard University. “Is he stepping down because there are no more public schools in Camden left to illegally take over or hijack? Is he stepping down because the state AG launched another investigation?”

Norcross says he will still remain at the helm of the Cooper University Hospital and his insurance business.