Brendan Byrne
Byrne, c. 1974
47th Governor of New Jersey
In office
January 15, 1974 – January 19, 1982
Preceded byWilliam Cahill
Succeeded byThomas Kean
Prosecutor of Essex County
In office
February 16, 1959 – January 11, 1968
Appointed byRobert B. Meyner
Preceded byCharles Webb
Succeeded byJoseph P. Lordi
Personal details
Born
Brendan Thomas Byrne

(1924-04-01)April 1, 1924
West Orange, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedJanuary 4, 2018(2018-01-04) (aged 93)
Livingston, New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1953; div. 1993)​
    Ruthi Zinn
    ​
    (m. 1994)​
    Children7; including Barbara
    EducationPrinceton University (BA)
    Harvard University (LLB)
    Military service
    Allegiance United States
    Branch/service United States Army
    Years of service1943–1945
    Rank First Lieutenant
    UnitUnited States Army Air Forces
    414th Bombardment Squadron, 97th Bombardment Group[1]
    AwardsDistinguished Flying Cross
    Air Medal (4)

    Brendan Thomas Byrne (April 1, 1924 – January 4, 2018) was an American attorney and Democratic Party politician who served as the 47th Governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982.

    Byrne began his career as a private attorney in Newark and East Orange. In 1959, Governor Robert B. Meyner appointed Byrne to serve as Essex County Prosecutor; he served in that role until 1968. In the late 1960s, an FBI wiretap recorded local mobsters calling Byrne "the man who couldn't be bought" in reference to his high ethical standards. The publication of the comment propelled Byrne to popularity in an era when corruption was a major concern in state and national politics.[2] He left his office as prosecutor to serve as President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities from 1968 to 1970, then as a Superior Court judge.

    In 1973, using "the man who couldn't be bought" as a campaign slogan,[3] Byrne ran for governor of New Jersey. He won the Democratic primary with support from the powerful Hudson County political machine and carried the general election. His landslide victory, until then the largest in the state's history, was seen as a reaction against a bribery scandal in state government and the Watergate scandal.

    During his first term, Byrne signed the state's first income tax, which broke a campaign promise and was initially highly unpopular across party lines. In 1977, he faced several prominent challengers for the party nomination but won the Democratic primary with a small plurality of the vote. Despite expectations he would lose the general election to Raymond Bateman, Byrne came from behind to win a second term.

    During his time as governor, Byrne oversaw the opening of the first gambling casinos in Atlantic City and established the New Jersey Department of the Public Advocate. He also preserved a large majority of woodlands and wildlife areas in the state by restricting development.[4][5]

    Early life and education

    Byrne was born and raised in West Orange, New Jersey.[6] He was the fourth child among five of Irish American Catholic parents Francis A. Byrne (1886–1974), a local public safety commissioner,[7] and Genevieve Brennan Byrne (1888–1969).[8]

    In 1942, Byrne graduated from West Orange High School in West Orange, New Jersey, where he as president of the debate club and senior class president.[9] He briefly enrolled at Seton Hall University, but left the university in March of the following year to join the U.S. Army.[8] During World War II, Byrne served in the U.S. Army Air Forces as a navigator on a B-17, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and four Air Medals.[9] By the time of his discharge from active service in 1945, he had achieved the rank of lieutenant.[9]

    After the end of World War II, Byrne attended Princeton University for two years, where he studied at the university's School of Public and International Affairs.[4] Due to World War II, he spent only two years on campus, finishing his undergraduate thesis while enrolled at Harvard Law School.[4] He graduated from Princeton University's School of Public and International Affairs in 1949 after completing a 95-page long senior thesis titled, "Proportional Representation in Municipal Government". He then attended Harvard Law School, where he graduated with his LL.B. in 1951.[9][10]

    Career

    Private attorney

    Byrne then worked as a private attorney, first for the Newark-based law firm of John W. McGeehan, Jr., and later for the East Orange firm of Teltser and Greenberg.[11]

    New Jersey state government

    In October 1955, Byrne was appointed an assistant counsel to Governor Robert B. Meyner.[12] The following year, he became the governor's acting executive secretary.[4] In 1958, Byrne was appointed the deputy attorney general responsible for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.[12] The following year, Governor Meyner appointed him as the Essex County prosecutor.[12] Governor Hughes reappointed Byrne to this same office in 1964 following the end of his first five-year term.[9] From 1968 to 1970, Byrne served as the president of the Board of Public Utilities Commissioners.[13]

    New Jersey Superior Court

    In 1970, Byrne was appointed by Governor William T. Cahill to the Superior Court.[8] He served as the assignment judge for Morris, Sussex, and Warren Counties starting in 1972.[8]

    Governor of New Jersey (1974–1982)

    1973 election

    In April 1973, Byrne resigned from the Superior court to run for governor.[9]

    Byrne defeated Ann Klein and Ralph DeRose in the 1973 Democratic primary to win the party's nomination for governor.[8] In the November general election, Byrne won by beating the Republican nominee Congressman Charles Sandman in a landslide.[9] Sandman had defeated the incumbent Governor Cahill in the primary.[9] Byrne's landslide margin of victory was so vast that it allowed Democrats to capture control both chambers of the state legislature with supermajorities.[14][15][16]

    First term

    On January 15, 1974, Byrne was sworn in as the 47th governor of New Jersey.[9]

    Some of the policies enacted by the first Byrne administration include: the implementation of New Jersey's first state income tax, the establishment of spending limits on local governments, county governments, school districts, and the state, the establishment of both the Department of the Public Advocate and the Department of Energy, and the implementation of public financing for future gubernatorial general elections.[17] Although Byrne claimed during the 1973 campaign that a personal income tax would not be necessary for "the foreseeable future", he eventually "muscled through" the unpopular income tax, New Jersey's first, in 1976; it earned him the nickname "One-Term Byrne".[18]

    1977 election

    Byrne faced ten opponents in the 1977 Democratic primary, including future governor James Florio.[9] However, Byrne obtained the party's nomination, and went on to defeat his Republican opponent, State Senator Raymond Bateman, in the general election on November 8, 1977.[4] This despite the fact that in early 1977, three-quarters of voters disapproved of his job performance and in polls taken in the summer, he trailed Bateman by 17 points.[19]

    Byrne and Bateman debated nine times and Byrne used the governorship to his advantage, signing bills and appearing with cabinet members all over the state, benefiting from a visit by President Carter and turning what was his biggest weakness, the income tax, into a strength.[12] Shortly before the 1977 gubernatorial election, New Jersey homeowners began receiving rebate checks (funded by state income tax revenues) to offset their property taxes, while Bateman's plan—replacing the state income tax with an increased sales tax—was widely criticized.[20]

    Until 2021, Byrne was the last Democrat to win re-election as Governor in New Jersey.

    Second term

    During his second term, Byrne focused on policies such as: the passage of the Pinelands Protection Act, expansion of major highways, including the Atlantic City Expressway and Interstate 287, upgrades to sewage systems, further development of the Meadowlands Sports Complex, and casino-hotel development in Atlantic City.[4] He is one of only two Democrats, also including incumbent Phil Murphy, to be elected governor twice in the past fifty years.[12] The other Governors elected to two terms (Thomas Kean, Christie Whitman, and Chris Christie) have all been Republicans.[18]

    Cabinet and administration

    The Byrne Cabinet[21]
    OfficeNameTerm
    GovernorBrendan ByrneJanuary 15, 1974 – January 19, 1982
    Secretary of AgriculturePhillip AlampiJuly 2, 1956 – June 30, 1982
    Attorney GeneralWilliam F. HylandJanuary 15, 1974 – January 17, 1978
    John J. DegnanJanuary 17, 1978 – March 5, 1981
    Judith J. A YaskinMarch 5, 1981 – March 26, 1981 (acting)
    James R. ZazzaliMarch 26, 1981 – January 19, 1982
    Commissioner of BankingRichard F. SchaubFebruary 26, 1973 – August 31, 1976
    Robert F. WagnerSeptember 1976 – May 1977
    Mary L. ParellMay 2, 1977 – February 22, 1978
    Robert R. BianchiFebruary 24, 1978 – February 8, 1982
    President of the
    Civil Service Commission    		James A. AllowayJune 8, 1970 – September 23, 1976
    S. Howard WoodsonSeptember 23, 1976 – March 23, 1982
    Commissioner of Community AffairsSidney L. Willis1974 (acting)
    Patricia Q. SheehanJanuary 17, 1974 – December 1, 1978
    Joseph A. LeFanteDecember 15, 1978 – February 10, 1982
    Commissioner of CorrectionsRobert MulcahyNovember 8, 1976 – January 17, 1978
    William H. FauverJune 15, 1978 – December 31, 1997
    (Acting: January 18, 1974 – June 15, 1978)
    Defense Adjutant GeneralMajor General William R. SharpApril 23, 1970 – March 20, 1974
    Major General Wilfred C. Menard Jr.March 20, 1974 – February 10, 1982
    Commissioner of EducationFred G. BurkeJuly 1, 1974 – March 31, 1982
    Commissioner of EnergyAnthony J. Grossi, President (PUC)1972 – 1975
    Joel R. Jacobson, President (PUC)1975 – July 20, 1977
    Joel R. Jacobson, Commissioner (DOE)July 21, 1977 – December 22, 1981
    Charles A Richman1981 – 1982 (acting)
    Commissioner of Environmental ProtectionRichard J SullivanMay 5, 1970 – May 6, 1974
    Joseph T. Barber1974 (acting)
    David J. BardinMay 9, 1974 – May 6, 1977
    Rocco D. RicciJuly 10, 1977 – May 12, 1978
    (Acting: 1977)
    Betty Wilson1978 (acting)
    Daniel Joseph O'HernMay 12, 1978 – July 16, 1979
    Betty Wilson1979 (acting)
    Jerry F. EnglishAugust 23, 1979-March 1, 1982
    Commissioner of HealthJames R. CowanJanuary 29, 1970 – May 13, 1974
    Joanne E. FinleyJune 17, 1974 – March 5, 1982
    Chancellor of Higher EducationRalph A. DunganJune 26, 1967 – August 9, 1977
    T. Edward HollinderAugust 9, 1977 – June 30, 1990
    Commissioner of Human ServicesAnn Klein, DIA1974 – October 31, 1976
    Ann Klein, DHSNovember 1, 1976 – February 5, 1981
    Timothy CardenMarch 17, 1981 – February 25, 1982
    Commissioner of InsuranceRichard C. McDonoughFebruary 14, 1972 – January 21, 1974
    James J. SheeranJanuary 21, 1974 – January 25, 1982
    Commissioner of Labor and Workforce
    Development    		Joseph A. Hoffman1974 – 1976
    John J. Horn1976 – 1982
    Public AdvocateStanley Van NessMay 21, 1974 – February 11, 1982
    Secretary of StateJ. Edward CrabielJanuary 15, 1974 – July 11, 1977
    F. Joseph Carragher1974 (acting)
    George W. Lee1977 (acting)
    Donald LanJuly 11, 1977 – January 19, 1982
    Commissioner of TransportationAlan SagnerJanuary 21, 1974 – August 15, 1977
    Russell MullenAugust 15, 1977 – May 22, 1978
    Louis GambacciniMay 22, 1978 – September 25, 1981
    Anne CanbyNovember 16, 1981 – April 16, 1982
    (Acting: August 13, 1981 – November 16, 1981)
    State TreasurerRichard LeoneJanuary 15, 1974 – December 10, 1976
    Clifford A. GoldmanFebruary 18, 1977 – January 19, 1982
    (Acting: 1976 – 1977)

    Law practice and columnist

    Byrne accepting honors for a career in public service from The Citizens Campaign in 2011

    After leaving office in 1982, Governor Byrne became a senior partner at Carella, Byrne, Bain, Gilfillan, Cecchi, Stewart & Olstein in Roseland, New Jersey (now Carella, Byrne, Cecchi, Brody and Agnello, P.C.).[22] Additionally, Byrne and his successor as governor, Thomas Kean, co-wrote a weekly column in The Star-Ledger, containing their "dialogue" on state and national public affairs and politics.[9] He has also taught courses at Princeton University and Rutgers University.[22]

    Despite not supporting all of his policies, Byrne said that Governor Chris Christie should run for president in 2016, calling Christie "the best candidate that the Republicans have" and complimented his "charm".[18]

    Personal life

    On June 27, 1953, he married Jean Featherly,[9] with whom he had seven children.[23] Byrne's son, Tom Byrne, was the New Jersey Democratic State Committee chair in the 1990s and was a prospective candidate for the U.S. Senate race in 2000, before withdrawing in favor of eventual winner Jon Corzine, who later became governor.[4] Brendan's oldest granddaughter, Meaghan, who also saved Brendan's life with the Heimlich at Nero's Grille in April 2016, worked as a legislative staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives before moving into NGO foreign policy work.[24]

    Jean and Brendan Byrne divorced in 1993 after 40 years of marriage. She died in 2015 of babesiosis, aged 88.[23]

    Byrne married Ruth Zinn, who was also divorced, in 1994.[9][25]

    2010 assault

    On February 16, 2010, while vacationing in London with his wife, Byrne was punched in the face by a mentally ill man near Waterloo tube station.[26] The attacker was subsequently restrained by a London Underground station supervisor who came to Byrne's aid until the police arrived.[26] Byrne, who had taken part in a staged charity boxing match with Muhammad Ali in 1979, joked, "At least I didn't fall down at Waterloo, as when I fought Ali."[26][27]

    Death

    Byrne's grave in the Princeton Cemetery with orange flowers during Princeton Reunions in May 2022.

    Byrne died on January 4, 2018, in Livingston, New Jersey, of a lung infection at the age of 93.[5][2][8][13]

    His funeral was held on January 8 at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey.[28] Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin, then-Governor Chris Christie and Governor-elect Phil Murphy, former Governors Thomas Kean, Donald DiFrancesco, Jim McGreevey, Richard Codey and Jon Corzine and U. S. Representative Bill Pascrell were in attendance.[29] Byrne's remains were cremated and his ashes were interred in Princeton Cemetery.

    Legacy

    From 1981 to 1996, the Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford was named Brendan Byrne Arena. It hosted the New Jersey Devils, New Jersey Nets, and Seton Hall Pirates men's basketball. The arena was then renamed Continental Airlines Arena, followed by IZOD Center.[30]

    The Brendan T. Byrne State Forest, formerly Lebanon State Forest, in New Lisbon is named for him.[8]

    In 2006, Rutgers University's Center on the American Governor of the Eagleton Institute of Politics established the Brendan T. Byrne Archive, an online database containing various resources from the Byrne administration, including original documents and video interviews with Brendan Byrne and members of his administration.[31]

    In 2011, Byrne was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame along with Queen Latifah, John Travolta, and ten others.[32]

    In 2014, Byrne's former chief counsel Donald Linky published a biography of Byrne, New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne: The Man Who Couldn't Be Bought.[18][33][34]

    References

    1. ↑ Brendan T Byrne bio - American Air Museum in Britain
    2. 1 2 "Ex-New Jersey Gov. Brendan Byrne, too ethical for mobsters, dies at 93". Chicago Tribune. January 4, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    3. ↑ "Governor Brendan T. Byrne Timeline". Rutgers University Center on the American Governor. Rutgers University. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
    4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Brendan Byrne, Governor Who Gave New Jersey Casinos, Dies at 93". Bloomberg. January 4, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    5. 1 2 "Son: Former New Jersey Gov. Brendan Byrne, Democrat who mobsters said was too ethical to be bribed, dies at age 93". The Washington Post. January 4, 2018. Archived from the original on January 5, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    6. ↑ Golway, Terry (October 31, 2004). "When Codey Talks, He Talks to Them". The New York Times.
    7. ↑ Portnoy, Jenna (January 4, 2018). "Brendan Byrne, two-term New Jersey governor in 1970s, dies at 93". The Washington Post.
    8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Brendan Byrne, Former New Jersey Governor, Dies at 93". The Star-Ledger. January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "Governor Brendan T. Byrne Biography". Center on the American Governor. Rutgers University. Archived from the original on October 14, 2014. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
    10. ↑ Byrne, Brendan Thomas (1949). "Proportional Representation in Municipal Government". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
    11. ↑ Edward J. Mullin, Fitzgerald's New Jersey Legislative Manual, 1980, "Governor's Biography, p. 413-414"
    12. 1 2 3 4 5 Furgerson, Laura Kidd (January 4, 2018). "Former New Jersey Gov. Brendan Byrne Dies At 93". Hackensack Daily Voice. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    13. 1 2 Christie, Chris (January 4, 2018). "Governor Chris Christie On The Passing Of Governor Brendan T. Byrne". Office of the Governor. Archived from the original on January 5, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    14. ↑ Sullivan, Ronald (November 7, 1973). "Sandman Routed — GOP Loses Control of State Legislature 3rd Time in Century". The New York Times. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
    15. ↑ "Election Decimates the G.O.P.'s Ranks in Trenton". The New York Times. November 8, 1973. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
    16. ↑ Sullivan, Ronald (November 9, 1973). "Jersey Republicans Urge Party Purge". The New York Times. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
    17. ↑ Edward J. Mullin, Fitzgerald's New Jersey Legislative Manual, 1980, "Governor's Biography, p.413"
    18. 1 2 3 4 Haddon, Heather (December 19, 2014). "Brendan Byrne, 90 Years Old and Still in the Mix". The Wall Street Journal.
    19. ↑ "Blue Jersey:: Polls and the 1977 Democratic Comeback". Archived from the original on May 26, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
    20. ↑ "Blue Jersey:: Byrne's strategy in the 1977 comeback". Archived from the original on May 26, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
    21. ↑ "Governor Brendan T. Byrne Cabinet and Staff".
    22. 1 2 "Son: Former New Jersey Gov. Brendan Byrne, Democrat who mobsters said was too ethical to be bribed, dies at age 93". ABC News. January 4, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
    23. 1 2 "Former N.J. First Lady Jean Byrne dies at 88". The Star-Ledger. August 12, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
    24. ↑ "meaghan byrne - LegiStorm Search Results". www.legistorm.com. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
    25. ↑ Linky, Donald (October 13, 2014). New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne: The Man Who Couldn't Be Bought. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781611477436.
    26. 1 2 3 Sherman, Ted (February 16, 2010). "Former N.J. Gov. Brendan Byrne is mugged, punched in face while in London". The Star-Ledger.
    27. ↑ Kirby, Terry (February 19, 2010). "Jack Sparrow impersonator saves visitor from meeting his Waterloo". London Evening Standard.
    28. ↑ "Hundreds gather to remember former N.J. Gov. Byrne". New Jersey.com. January 8, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
    29. ↑ "What they said about Brendan Byrne: Former governors salute their colleague". Daily Record. January 8, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
    30. ↑ Sandomir, Richard (January 5, 1996). "Brendan Byrne Arena Goes Continental". The New York Times.
    31. ↑ "Brendan T. Byrne Archive". Center on the American Governor. Rutgers University. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
    32. ↑ DeMarco, Megan (January 21, 2011). "Queen Latifah, Gov. Brendan Byrne announced as New Jersey Hall of Fame class of 2011 inductees". The Star-Ledger.
    33. ↑ Linky, Donald (2014). New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne: The Man Who Couldn't Be Bought. Fairleigh Dickinson. ISBN 978-1611477429.
    34. ↑ "Summer Reading 2015: Biography Takes Admiring Look at Popular Governor - NJ Spotlight". NJSpotlight.com. August 18, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2017.

    Further reading

    Archival collections

    • Brendan Byrne papers (The Monsignor Field Archives & Special Collection Center at Seton Hall University) - Contains materials related to Brendan Byrne's campaigns for governor of New Jersey and some personal materials documenting his time as governor and his activities with the Democratic party, primarily from 1973-1977
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