Nilsa Cruz-Perez (born January 21, 1961) is an American politician who was sworn into office to represent the 5th Legislative District in the New Jersey Senate on December 15, 2014, to fill the vacant seat of Donald Norcross. She had previously served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1995 to 2010 and is the first Latina woman to serve in the Assembly.
Early life Cruz-Perez born on January 21, 1961, in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. She was a member of the Popular Democratic Party during her youth. Attended the University of Puerto Rico earning a degree in political science, Big Bend Community College Army Quartermaster School and the Temple University Overseas Division. Cruz-Perez served in the United States Army from 1981 until her been honorably discharged in 1987, she was stationed in Mainz, Germany and attained the rank of sergeant. Cruz-Perez works as a part-time community development specialist for the Camden County Improvement Authority. Formerly a resident of Camden, she now resides in Barrington.
Career New Jersey Assembly Cruz-Perez was selected in February 1995 to fill the vacancy created by resignation of Assemblyman Wayne R. Bryant, when Bryant was selected to fill the Senate seat vacated due to the death of Senator Walter Rand on January 6, 1995. She was sworn into the Assembly on February 27. Serving in the Assembly until 2010, representing the 5th District for the entire time she was serving, she was the Assistant Majority Leader from 2002 to 2005 and Deputy Majority Leader from January 2008 to January 2010. In 2009 she announced that she would retire after her current term in the legislature.McCarthy, Pete. "Seat opens in 5th District", Gloucester County Times, March 18, 2009. Accessed November 15, 2016. "Assemblywoman Nilsa Cruz-Perez, the first Hispanic woman elected to the Legislature, announced she will not seek re-election after 14 years in Trenton."
Cruz-Perez was the primary sponsor of Bill S2599 which seeks to change the legal term of "illegal alien" to "undocumented foreign national."
New Jersey Senate Following the election and swearing in of State Senator Donald Norcross to the United States House of Representatives in 2014, the Democratic committees of Camden and Gloucester counties (the two counties within the 5th district) appointed Cruz-Perez to the vacant Senate seat. She served until a 2015 special election where she won. While in the Senate, she is serving on the Economic Growth, (vice-chair), Military and Veterans' Affairs, and Transportation committees and Joint Committee on the Public Schools. In addition to her legislative duties, she is also a vice-chair of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee (since 2015) and a member of the Rutgers University–Camden Board of Directors (since 2014). Between her legislative stints, she was the Democratic Vice-chair of the 2011 New Jersey Apportionment Commission, the committee delegated to redraw the state legislative districts following the 2010 census.
In 2025, Cruz-Perez authored legislation to prohibit the commercial farming of octopuses, citing concerns about octopus intelligence and animal rights.
Committees Committee assignments for the current session are:Senator Nilsa I. Cruz-Perez (D), New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 21, 2024. Economic Growth (as chair) Military and Veterans' Affairs (as vice-chair) Budget and Appropriations
District 5 Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly.New Jersey State Constitution 1947 (Updated Through Amendments Adopted in November, 2020): Article IV, Section II, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 21, 2024. The representatives from the 5th District for the 2024–2025 Legislative Session are:Legislative Roster for District 5, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 21, 2024. Senator Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D) Assemblyman Bill Moen (D) , and Assemblyman William Spearman (D)
Electoral history New Jersey Senate
New Jersey Assembly
References
External links Senator Cruz-Perez's legislative web page, New Jersey Legislature New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure forms 2015 2014 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 Nilsa I. Cruz-Perez, Project Vote Smart