Torres, Salvatore, Clarke running as team

Dr. Jonathan Torres of Randolph and Diane Salvatore of Madison, who are running for the state Assembly in District 25, are joining state Senate candidate Christine Clarke of Jefferson on Team LD25.

The redrawn 25th District includes 19 towns in Morris and Passaic counties: Boonton Township, Butler, Dover, Harding, Jefferson Township, Kinnelon, Madison, Mendham Borough, Mendham Township, Mine Hill, Morristown, Morris Township, Mount Arlington, Randolph, Rockaway Borough, Rockaway Township, Victory Gardens, West Milford and Wharton.

Torres is an award-winning family medicine physician and physician educator, a Boy Scouts leader and a father of two. He works in the Department of Family Medicine at Morristown Medical Center and founded the osteopathic neuromusculoskeletal medicine residency program in 2016. He also oversaw a COVID-19 unit during the pandemic in 2020.

He is running for the Assembly to make sure that patient-care decisions stay between patients and their doctors and are not made by politicians or insurance companies.

“I’m grateful to be a member of this team, working together to serve New Jersey,” he said. “I entered medicine to help people live better, healthier lives. I was taught how health can be affected not only by biological illness but also by social and emotional factors.

“But as I have practiced medicine, I have also seen the opposite: people whose health issues have cost them their jobs, their homes, their family and more. I have come to realize that to truly heal, we have to work together to improve access to health care, protect the environment and education, make New Jersey more affordable, and defend individual liberty.”

Salvatore is a magazine and digital journalism professional. She was editor in chief of Consumer Reports, Prevention and Ladies’ Home Journal, where she focused on creating high-quality, mission-based journalism aimed at improving people’s lives through community and policy change.

She has been inspired by the power of authentic collaboration between elected officials and motivated citizens on issues ranging from food safety to hospital funding and from women’s health care to prevention of gun violence.

“I’m proud to be part of this ticket of deeply committed public servants,” she said. “In my journalism career, I have seen up close the power of citizens advocating for changes to improve ordinary people’s lives, and it’s an honor to participate in that process now as a Democratic candidate.

“One of my key goals is to make New Jersey an excellent place for retirees to thrive, by advocating for creative, thoughtful and affordable living and housing options - generating collaborative plans aimed at ensuring greater cross-generational benefits in our neighborhoods.”

Morris County Democratic Chairwoman Amalia Duarte said she is proud to support the team. “Each brings a unique perspective about why they want to serve the residents who live in this legislative district. They are focused on improving the quality of life for residents, listening to their concerns and acting as their advocate.”

Clarke said, “It’s a joy to run with these incredible people for whom I am also so excited to vote.”