1. Donald Thomas DiFrancesco was born on November 20,1944 and is a retired American politician who served as the 51st governor of New Jersey from 2001 to 2002.
19 Facts About Donald DiFrancesco
1. 2.
Donald DiFrancesco succeeded Christine Todd Whitman after her resignation to become Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
3.
Donald DiFrancesco graduated in 1966 with a Bachelor's Degree from Penn State University in business, and was awarded a JD degree from Seton Hall University School of Law in 1969.
4.
Donald DiFrancesco was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1975.
5.
Donald DiFrancesco won a contested Republican primary, defeating former Assemblyman Arthur Manner by 1,067 votes.
6.
Donald DiFrancesco defeated incumbent Democratic Assemblywoman Betty Wilson by 2,387 votes.
7.
Donald DiFrancesco was re-elected in 1977 by a margin of 4,709 votes.
8.
Donald DiFrancesco was re-elected in 1981,1983,1987,1991,1993 and 1997.
9.
Donald DiFrancesco ran for Senate Minority Leader after the 1981 elections, eschewing the traditional rotation of leadership posts.
10.
Donald DiFrancesco defeated James P Vreeland, who had served as Assistant Minority Leader during the previous session.
11.
Donald DiFrancesco's title was officially Acting Governor until it was changed retroactively by legislation passed on January 10,2006, which classified anyone who, after January 1,2001, acted as governor for longer than 180 days as a full governor.
12.
Donald DiFrancesco initially planned to run for a full term as governor in the 2001 election.
13.
Donald DiFrancesco abruptly withdrew from the race in April 2001 after a number of unfavorable news stories emerged concerning his past legal and business dealings.
14.
Donald DiFrancesco designated former Representative Bob Franks, who had only narrowly lost to Jon Corzine in a 2000 Senate race despite being massively outspent by Corzine in a year in which Democrats gained four seats in the Senate.
15.
The time Donald DiFrancesco spent before, as acting Governor and since has been plagued with many controversies that were reported in various news publications.
16.
The New York Times reported that in 1996, a prominent builder in New Jersey aided Donald DiFrancesco by providing him with $225,000, to pay off an outstanding legal judgment.
17.
In 2011, Donald DiFrancesco settled with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission, a fine of $5800 for $4650 after returning the excess amounts of two illegal campaign contributions.
18.
In 2017, Donald DiFrancesco resigned from his position as Chair of University Hospital in Newark after it was revealed that he had hired a friend for an no-show job.
19.
Donald DiFrancesco presently serves on the Commerce Bancorp board of directors and is a partner in a law firm.