100 Most Powerful People In New Jersey In 2018

Whoever thought it could happen, that the most powerful person in New Jersey would not be the governor?

Well, maybe it's because the person who now tops the list has become one of the state's biggest job providers, and he's considering Newark as a potential home for Amazon's second headquarters.

That's how NJBIZ sees it as the publication compiled its list of the 100 most powerful people in New Jersey for 2018. Though the list is billed as a catalog of business power brokers, the compilation seems to go beyond the financial world, inserting people who don't necessarily have a direct hand in New Jersey commerce.

In fact, they include the people who pull the strings on politics and help to shape policy on the state and national level (George Norcross), as well as the people who help build and maintain New Jersey's economy (Amazon founder and chairman Jeff Bezos).

Here are the top five people from the list, with NJBIZ's explanation for each:

1. Jeff Bezos: "The most tangible is the e-commerce giant’s ever-growing fleet of fulfillment centers throughout the state that employ tens of thousands of workers and further enhance its reputation as one of the most important in the U.S. for warehousing. But things got a lot more interesting earlier this year when it was disclosed the city of Newark was one of 20 cities on Amazon’s short list to be the location of the company’s much-heralded second headquarters, or HQ2."
2. Phil Murphy: "The governor stormed to victory last November with an aggressive progressive agenda not seen in these parts for some time. In replacing a highly unpopular Chris Christie, Murphy cruised into Trenton with a clear mandate for change. And change is what he is offering."
3. George Norcross: "Mention George Norcross and you're unlikely to get a warm-and-fuzzy reaction from some. Then again, you just might, when responding to a question like, 'Who’s gonna get that done?' Call him an old-school machine pol or a cunning wheeler-dealer, but this son of a blue-collar labor boss delivers."
4. Stephen Sweeney: "Some things never change, like State Senate President Stephen Sweeney's annual presence in the rarified upper rungs of the Power 100 — nor the debate over whether his fortunes will rise or fall with a new administration. In the case of Sweeney and his likely impact on the New Jersey business community in the months ahead, the answers appear to be: rock steady, but remain wary."
5. Anthony Coscia: "Call Coscia an unrivaled numbers guy and you've unfairly damned him with faint praise. A partner in the prestigious law firm of Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, Coscia has handled all manner of corporate litigation and transactional law, but he’s best known for a canny ability to sort out the financial fine print of deals and proposals. So while he’s chairman of the board of Amtrak, Coscia also chairs its audits and finance committee. His past notable stints include topping the boards of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority."

See the whole list here.

Gov. Phil Murphy photo