A select group of New Jersey’s prime political players assembled at the Women’s Political Caucus of New Jersey (WPCNJ) breakfast Wednesday morning in Newark, promoting more bipartisan and independent female participation in the political process.

“The biggest benefit of this organization is the diverse network of women,” said Women’s Political Caucus of NJ vice president for membership Grace Strom Power, a prominent Mercer County attorney, to the group of about twenty people present at the offices of the law firm Genova Burns in downtown Newark. “A lot of what we need to do revolves around networking.”

“I looked around the table, and I didn’t see enough women,” added Rebecca M. Freed, a Genova Burns partner and the director of the corporate political activity group at the firm. “That’s when I chose to get involved.”

Others present at the event included state Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi (R-39); Democratic fundraiser and consultant Kay LiCausi; lobbyist Chrissy Buteas; Andrea Katz, chief of staff for state Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-37); and Alixon Collazos, board member at the non-profit Latinas United for Political Empowerment (LUPE) fund.

Attorneys Angelo Genova, senior partner, co-founder and chairman of Genova Burns, and Rajiv Parikh, of counsel at Genova Burns, were also present.

A South Jersey WPCNJ breakfast was held simultaneously on Wednesday morning at the offices of NW Financial LLC in Mount Laurel, hosted by WPCNJ secretary Dianna Geist.

The South Jersey event was attended by state Assemblywoman Gabriela Mosquera (D-4), state Assemblyman Troy Singleton (D-7) and Clinton Mayor Janice Kovach, according to WPCNJ board members.

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