New Jersey
Today is Juneteenth, but the state of New Jersey will also celebrate Friday. Here’s why
This year marks the third year that New Jersey will celebrate Juneteenth as an official state holiday. However, while Juneteenth technically combines the words June and nineteenth, the state of New Jersey will be celebrating the holiday on Friday, the 21st.
Here is everything you need to know about Juneteenth in New Jersey.
What does Juneteenth celebrate?
Juneteenth celebrates the day that federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865 and shared the news that slavery had been abolished, therefore freeing the state’s 250,000 enslaved people. This took place two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, according to History.com.
The following year, freed men in Texas organized the first ever “Jubilee Day” on June 19. The day was celebrated with barbecues, prayers, music and more. Then, according to History, as Black people migrated around the country, the tradition of celebrating Juneteenth went with them.
Texas became the first state to make Juneteenth an official state holiday in 1979 with several other states following suit in the years since. It is considered by many to be America’s second Independence Day and is typically celebrated on June 19.
Why is New Jersey observing Juneteenth on Friday instead of Wednesday?
In 2021, President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday. This means that on Wednesday, June 19, banks, post offices and credit unions will be closed, and USPS will not be delivering mail. Additionally, thousands of people all over the country will have the day off of work.
In 2020, less than one year prior to the federal declaration of the Juneteenth holiday, Murphy signed legislation designating Juneteenth as a state and public holiday. However, instead of celebrating on June 19, the state observes the holiday on the third Friday of June each year.
Since the New Jersey state government made Juneteenth a state holiday before the federal government declared it a national holiday, the state will continue to observe it on the third Friday in June rather than whatever day the 19th falls on.
Therefore, similar to other state holidays, state agencies such as the Motor Vehicle Commission, state courts, and other state employees will be closed or have the day off on Friday.
New Jersey state holidays
Juneteenth is one of 13 total state holidays that New Jersey is scheduled to observe in 2024. The other 12 holidays include:
- New Year’s Day: 1/1
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day: 1/15
- Presidents Day: 2/19
- Good Friday: 3/29
- Memorial Day: 5/27
- Independence Day: 7/4
- Labor Day: 9/2
- Columbus Day: 10/14
- Election Day: 11/5
- Veterans Day: 11/11
- Thanksgiving Day: 11/28
- Christmas Day: 12/25
Several other states recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday. According to the Pew Research Center, 28 states and the District of Columbia celebrated Juneteenth in 2023 with either all or some state government workers being granted a day off. Most of these states have designated Juneteenth as a permanent state holiday in recent years.
Wednesday, June 3, 2026 4:08PM
CAMDEN, N.J. (WPVI) — Dramatic video captured ferocious flames shooting from a row house in Camden Wednesday morning.
Firefighters were dispatched to the home on the 1100 block of Baring Street just after 5:30 a.m.
Crews say they now have the flames under control.
No one was injured.
Copyright © 2026 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Justin Murphy has defeated Robert Lebovics, Richard Tabor and Alex Zdan in New Jersey’s 2026 primary election for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.
The Associated Press declared Murphy the winner at 11:25 p.m., , with Murphy leading the other GOP candidates with 33% of the vote. Murphy will face Democratic incumbent U.S. Sen. Cory Booker in November’s general election. Booker ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Justin Murphy is a former committee person in Tabernacle, a small town in the Pine Barrens of Burlington County. He dedicated his campaign to the men and women of the U.S. military and said he was running because he cares about the culture of America, parental rights, health care and economic opportunity.
Murphy, who is an attorney, said his top priorities include private sector growth, tax cuts and spending reductions. He said during his campaign that he is committed to standing up to terrorism and crime, he supports securing the country’s northern and southern borders and intends to fight for energy independence if elected.
He also pledged to work to ensure older residents have an excellent Medicare program and said he will fight to keep the Jersey Shore “windmill free.”
During his campaign, Murphy said China poses a serious threat to the U.S., but he supports engaging with the Chinese from a position of strength, politically and economically. He also said on his website that he opposes the legalization of recreational marijuana. He ran for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in 2024 and finished in third place.
Here comes the midterms: Murphy to face Booker in November
Booker was elected to the Newark City Council in 1998, then served as the mayor from 2006 until 2013, when he won a special election for the U.S. Senate seat that was left vacant following the death of U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg. Booker was reelected the following year in the general election and was victorious in the 2020 general election.
Booker, a frequent critic of the Trump administration, has recently called for the Delaney Hall ICE detention center in Newark to be shut down and has strongly opposed the Department of Homeland Security’s plan to house an immigrant detention center in Roxbury Township.
Last year, Booker made the longest speech in the history of the Senate, lasting 25 hours and five minutes.
He is considered a potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate and has introduced legislation to significantly expand the standard tax deduction for singles and married couples, which would lower taxes on low- and middle-income wage earners. Booker grew up in North Jersey and graduated from Northern Valley Regional High School in Old Tappan.
According to the most recent statistics available, there are 6,679,849 registered voters in New Jersey. There are 2,535,718 registered Democrats, 1,677,041 registered Republicans and 2,467,092 independents and others. The general election is Nov. 3.
New Jersey
Shooting in Atlantic City, New Jersey, leaves suspect dead, 2 police officers injured, mayor says
A shooting in Atlantic City, New Jersey, has left a suspect dead and two officers wounded Tuesday, Mayor Marty Small Sr. said.
The shooting happened in the area of the 100 block of North Florida Avenue. Chopper 3 was over the scene, where a large police presence could be seen.
The conditions of the two officers weren’t immediately available. According to Small, the two officers were executing a search warrant.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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