TRENTON, N.J. – Assembly Republican Leader John DiMaio and the entire Assembly Republican Conference and staff are mourning the passing of Bethanne McCarthy Patrick.
“Bethanne pulled no punches. She did it with a warmth and humor that showed a depth of care for her constituents and a deep respect for her colleagues,” DiMaio (R-Warren) said. “We were of course disappointed that she was only able to serve on term, but she served with a dedication to wanting the best for New Jersey.”
She was part of a historic political upset that captured national headlines, abolishing the untouchable South Jersey Democrat machine that surprised even her.
McCarthy Patrick sensed voters in District 3 – Steve Sweeney country – were ready for a change, though, and when she was tapped to run for Assembly with Beth Sawyer and Senate candidate Ed Durr, she stepped up. She served from 2022 to 2024.
“The news of her passing came as a shock to all of us. She will be missed,” DiMaio said.
She owned a restaurant and worked as an EMT for Inspira Health. After 27 years as a firefighter and emergency medical technician, she retired from Pennsville Fire and Rescue.
She served on the Mannington Township board of education from 2018 to 2021; and the Salem County Chamber of Commerce board of directors from 2017 to 2018.
Her parents moved from Philadelphia to Pennsville when she was a child. She eventually settled in Mannington.
“We just set up roots here and I never wanted to leave,” McCarthy Patrick said in her 2023 biography video for the Assembly Republican Office. “Never had a reason.”
