Cory Booker, the senior United States Senator from New Jersey, is a political figure who defies easy categorisation. He is simultaneously a pragmatic legislator capable of forging bipartisan deals and a passionate activist whose political identity is fundamentally rooted in the principles of social justice and unorthodox, hands-on community action.
His journey from living in a public housing project to representing his state on the national stage forms a narrative of consistent, deeply personal advocacy.
Born in Washington, District of Columbia, Booker was raised in Harrington Park, New Jersey, by parents who were pioneering Black executives at International Business Machines Corporation and active participants in the civil rights movement. This dual legacy of professional excellence and social consciousness set his trajectory.
An accomplished student and American football player, he attended Stanford University, was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at the University of Oxford, and earned a law degree from Yale University. Rejecting lucrative career paths, he moved to Newark, New Jersey, choosing to live for eight years in the Brick Towers housing project to immerse himself in the challenges of the community he aimed to serve.
His political career began on the Newark Municipal Council, where he gained national attention for direct actions, including a ten-day hunger strike while living in a tent to protest drug-related violence. He served as Mayor of Newark from 2006 to 2013, focusing on reducing crime, expanding affordable housing, and attracting substantial private investment. His high-profile, digitally-savvy approach to constituent service reshaped the modern image of a local mayor.
Elected to the United States Senate in 2013, Booker has focused on criminal justice reform, economic equity, and environmental justice. He was a principal architect of the bipartisan First Step Act, a landmark piece of federal criminal justice legislation.
In a defining moment in March 2025, he staged a record-setting twenty-five hour and five minute filibuster on the Senate floor, an act he framed as “good trouble” in the spirit of civil rights leader John Lewis, deliberately breaking a record held by a senator who had opposed civil rights legislation. Beyond the headlines, he continues to pursue targeted bipartisan work, introducing legislation as recently as February 2026 to improve national school bus safety.
Personally, Booker married Alexis Lewis in 2025 and maintains his residence in Newark’s Central Ward. This choice symbolises his enduring commitment to the city that formed his political conscience, ensuring his national work remains grounded in the everyday realities of the community he first sought to uplift.
His story remains that of a man who views the floor of the Senate as an extension of the streets of Newark, each a venue for the same relentless pursuit of justice.
