NJ Voters Guide: 40th Legislative District
New Jersey’s 40th Legislative District is in North Jersey and spans parts of three counties. It covers portions of Bergen County (Franklin Lakes, Ridgewood and Wyckoff), Essex County (Caldwell, Essex Fells, Fairfield, North Caldwell, Verona and West Caldwell) and Passaic County (Hawthorne, Little Falls, Totowa, Wayne and Woodland Park).
This has long been a red district, although the proportion of registered voters who are Democrats and Republicans is roughly equal — 32% each. About 35% of the total are not affiliated with any party.
The Republicans incumbents seeking reelection are Christopher DePhillips, a Wyckoff attorney and the vice president of a consulting and systems company, and Al Barlas, a Cedar Grove man who served as the Republican chairman of the New Jersey Legislative Apportionment Commission.
The Democatic candidates are Ron Arnau of Woodland Park, and Jeffrey Gates of Caldwell.
Editor’s note: All candidates were contacted multiple times for the NJ Decides 2025 voting guide Q&As. Click on a candidate to see any answers provided.
Age: 44 Hometown: Caldwell Occupation: Realtor / Property Manager / Former Council President Personal or professional background: I am a former Caldwell Council President, Past NJ Kiwanis Treasurer, Past President Kiwanis Club of Caldwell-West Essex, Realtor / Property Manager. Husband, father, and passionate community volunteer and advocate. I believe that accountability is one of the most important aspects of an elected official, which is why I was willing to participate in a candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters. Unfortunately my Republican Incumbent opponents refused to defend their record and state their positions by refusing to participate. What is your top issue this year? Housing and affordability are top issues. As a Realtor I see on a daily basis people who are well qualified to buy a home get frustrated and losing bidding wars when there are 10-20 or more offers on a house. More inventory would help, but unfortunately a large number of the new developments end up as rental properties which doesn’t help the short supply of homes for sale. Incentives to help make more new construction “For Sale” instead of “For Rent” properties would allow young people to have a better chance of buying homes and building wealth earlier. Additionally, with the Federal Government currently working to close down the Department of Education and FEMA we need to protect NJ in those areas. What are your specific proposals for making New Jersey more affordable? -Incentivize new construction to be “For Sale” instead of “For Rent” properties -Support of the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit -Push for increased shared services for municipalities and schools -I will fight against any cuts to Medicare / Medicaid and work to drive down prescription costs Do you support the state law designed to increase the amount of affordable housing and if not, how would you make housing less costly for residents? In general there is a housing shortage in our district which is a supply and demand issue, but there are issues with the formula and process that could be better. A few examples: -When open space in a town is used to determine buildable land, that typically includes flood areas that should not be built on. There needs to be better communication between state departments to communicate this type of information. -With requirements that municipalities allow new developments it often causes infrastructure issues with water, sewer, and schools. Residents who currently live in the town should not be forced to fully fund upgrades to those themselves. How would you manage potential federal funding cuts to social services, health care, education, and other areas, particularly in light of the state’s budget challenges? The first line of defense is to push back against federal funds being cut from these areas. As a state that sends more to the federal government than we get back, further cuts to what we get must be fought. I’m in favor of NJ participating in the Northeast Public Health Collaborative to help ensure our residents can get the healthcare they need. I would also support food assistance programs to ensure everyone in our state has access to healthy foods. NJ public schools overall are excellent and we need to continue to ensure our children have access to a high quality public education. I fully support our public schools and plan to send my 3.5 year old son to them (meanwhile, my Republican opponents both send their kids to private school). Your website: https://GatesforAssembly.com
The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.
The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.
