The debate whether ‘Central Jersey’ exists just won’t die — but lawmakers are trying to end it

A group of lawmakers wants to do what’s long seemed impossible — settle the argument over whether Central Jersey exists.

The debate that formally reached an Assembly committee on Thursday — via a bill that affirms Central Jersey as one of the state’s three tourism regions — has raged for years.

Gov. Phil Murphy tried to put an end to the controversy more than three years ago, when he tweeted: “As governor of the great state of New Jersey, I hereby declare that CENTRAL JERSEY DOES EXIST.”

Murphy lives in Middletown, which is about as central as Central Jersey gets.

Yet his definition of “Central Jersey” was a bit squishier. Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth and Somerset counties were all central under state law, he said in a follow-up tweet. But he shared a map describing Ocean and Union counties as “central debatable.”

Both those “debatable” counties would make it into Central Jersey's turf under the new bill, sponsored by Assemblymember Roy Freiman. The Democrat’s 16th Legislative District straddles parts of Mercer, Somerset and Hunterdon counties.

“For too long the heart of our state — home to our state capital, historic sites and bucolic scenery — Central Jersey has not received the real attention it deserves,” Freiman, who sponsored the bill, said in a statement.

Murphy’s December 2019 tweet didn’t exactly settle the matter:

Mike Deak of the Courier News and Home News Tribune — which are online under the very apt name MyCentralJersey.com — wrote at the time that Central Jerseyans never thought the matter was in question until they saw Stephen Colbert (who lives in the North Jersey town of Montclair) sparring with the governor about it a few months earlier. But he complicated things further:

“That list is problematical. Monmouth and Ocean counties belong to that region commonly known as the Shore,” Deak wrote. “The western part of Union County spills into Central Jersey, but the eastern part of the county is clearly closer in spirit to Hudson and Essex counties. Mercer County is an island onto itself, except for Princeton, which aspires to be part of Central Jersey.”

But, he argued, Central Jerseyans represent the best of the state — tolerant, diverse and pulling a little bit from the qualities of every other region.

Atlas Obscura takes the long view on the argument — what we call North Jersey and South Jersey these days are essentially the late-1600s East Jersey and West Jersey, along a diagonal dividing line, it says.

“From the moment King Charles II gifted a bunch of land to two of his toadies, New Jersey was defined by what it is not,” the publication wrote in 2019. “It is not Pennsylvania, and it is not New York. It is the space in between the rivers, and immediately on the other side of those rivers are two huge cities, New York and Philadelphia.”

It also notes that South Jersey Democrats have an entirely different power base and culture than North Jersey Democrats (Republicans control much smaller pockets of New Jersey than the Democrats do).

The Central Jersey debate is a perennial one in the New Jersey subreddit. Just this month, user ttp123456ers offered the following justification: “If you’re from the north, Trenton is in South Jersey. If you’re from the south, Trenton is in North Jersey.”

A similar bill sponsored by Freiman in 2022 never made it to a committee vote. That means this year’s version already has more momentum — it cleared two Assembly committees Thursday during a joint hearing.

Under the new bill, the North Jersey tourism region would comprise Sussex, Warren, Morris, Passaic, Bergen, Essex and Hudson counties. South Jersey would comprise Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Atlantic, Salem, Cumberland and Cape May counties. The Central Jersey region would include Hunterdon, Somerset, Union, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean counties.

Freiman said the bill would boost tourism in every corner of the state.

“Redefining New Jersey’s tourism regions, looking at the way we fund tourism efforts, and delving into agritourism will help us highlight both our world-famous attractions and hidden gems,” he said.

The bill would require the development of a destination marketing organization in each region and the creation of sub-regions to promote more local tourism all over the state.

“More families deserve the opportunity to visit and enjoy New Jersey in all of its regions," North Jersey Assemblyman Ralph Caputo said in a statement.