John Scott Wisniewski ( ; born June 28, 1962) is an American Democratic Party politician, who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1996 to 2018, where he represented the 19th Legislative District. He was a Democratic candidate for Governor of New Jersey in the 2017 election, he lost in the primary election to Phil Murphy. Early life, education, and law career Wisniewski was born on June 28, 1962, in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. He is of Polish descent, and the son of a factory worker. He attended Sacred Heart Elementary School in South Amboy and Sayreville War Memorial High School in nearby Sayreville, New Jersey. In 1984, he received a B.A. from Rutgers University in English / Economics and was awarded a J.D. from the Seton Hall University School of Law in 1987, where he was a classmate of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Wisniewski is an adjunct professor at Monmouth University. He also owns and runs a general practice law firm, Wisniewski and Associates, L.L.C., based out of Sayreville. Political career Before joining the General Assembly, Wisniewski served on the Sayreville Cable Television Advisory Board, the Middlesex County Senior Citizen Housing Task Force, and the Middlesex County Planning Board. He has also served on the Sayreville Board of Education's Building Utilization Committee. Wisniewski currently serves on the board of trustees for the United Way of Central New Jersey and is an Executive Board Member of the Middlesex County Arts and Education Council. Legislative career Democrats statewide saw a net gain of three seats in the Assembly in the 1995 elections, with two of the pickups coming in the 19th District where Arline Friscia and Wisniewski knocked off the Republican incumbents Stephen A. Mikulak and Ernest L. Oros. In the Assembly, Wisniewski introduced legislation that includes the Work First New Jersey Act, which required individuals to work at jobs or in community services as a condition of their benefits, the Dormitory Safety Act which required the installation of sprinklers in all dormitories, the School Bus Enhanced Safety Inspection Act which created new ways and standards by which a school bus was inspected, and the Athletic Training Licensure Act which required athletic trainers to be licensed. Assemblyman Wisniewski also sponsored the bill that was signed into law which increased the property tax reduction for Veterans and seniors, legislation designed to strengthen Megan's Law by keeping sexual predators away from