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Colleen O'Dea on Muck Rack

Colleen O'Dea

Verified
New Jersey
As seen in: NJ PBS, NJ Spotlight News, MosaicNJcom, Gothamist, WNYC (New York, NY), NorthJersey.com, The Record (Bergen County), NewsBreak, WHYY-TV (Philadelphia, PA), TAPinto, The Press of Atlantic City, Financial Advisor and
Covers:  data journalism, government, politics, elections, education, social issues, legal issues, immigration
Doesn't Cover: Energy, environment
Journalist and data wrangler for @NJSpotlightNews. Lifelong Jersey girl. Proud mom and fan of Bruuuuuce. Crocheting is my zen. All my tweets are my own.

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Colleen O'Dea’s Biography

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Colleen O’Dea is an award-winning, long-time journalist based in New Jersey. She started her career at The Record of Hackensack, worked in United Press International's Trenton bureau and then spent most of her career at the Daily Record of Morris County. O’Dea left the paper in February 2011 and joined NJ Spotlight later that year. She is currently a data and general assignment reporter with the online news site focused on state issues and analysis.
In addition to freelance writing, O'Dea has…

Colleen O'Dea’s Journalist Portfolio

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Libraries Must Wait for Access to Much-Needed Bond Funds

Libraries Must Wait for Access to Much-Needed Bond Funds

Eighteen months after New Jersey voters overwhelmingly approved spending $125 million to upgrade and moderniz…

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Fate of State Affordable Housing Funds on COAH Agenda Today - NJ Spotlight

Fate of State Affordable Housing Funds on COAH Agenda Today - NJ Spotlight

The New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing is scheduled today to hold its first meeting in more than two ye…

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Interactive Map: New Jersey's Deficient Bridges - NJ Spotlight

Interactive Map: New Jersey's Deficient Bridges - NJ Spotlight

Due to reporting issues, the locations of some bridges may be inaccurate. Zoom in and click on a bridge to fi…

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Charities Fear Obama Budget Will Hurt Donations

Charities Fear Obama Budget Will Hurt Donations

Many in the philanthropic community say President Obama's budget proposal, which would cap the tax deduction …

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Interactive Map: Sandy-Related Insurance Claims - NJ Spotlight

Interactive Map: Sandy-Related Insurance Claims - NJ Spotlight

Total incurred losses due to Superstorm Sandy through March 29. Hovering over an area will bring up a summary…

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Interactive Map: Per-Pupil School Spending - NJ Spotlight

Interactive Map: Per-Pupil School Spending - NJ Spotlight

The total amount spent per pupil by district in the 2011-12 school year by elementary and K-12 districts. The…

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Articles

‘Honor system’ is flaw in New Jersey voter registration, critics say

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By Colleen O'Dea Verified
| NJ Spotlight
File photo As a law firm hired by Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s administration investigates how thousands of noncitizens wound up on New Jersey voter rolls, some election officials say the state’s registration process is essentially flawed. “It’s an honor system,” said Christine Giordano Hanlon, chair of the New Jersey State Republican Committee and, as Monmouth County clerk, a certifier of elections.
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Surprise in New Jersey voting error: Some may be citizens after all

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By Colleen O'Dea Verified
| NJ Spotlight
File photo New Jersey will not give the Trump administration information about thousands of noncitizens registered to vote, Gov. Mikie Sherrill told federal officials Tuesday. The state, meanwhile, started to scrub the voter rolls of more than 4,500 people who are ineligible to cast ballots. Sherrill said her administration was contacting the individuals by mail and starting “the process of correcting” the rolls.
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Lawmakers heard warnings as 6,600 noncitizens registered to vote

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By Colleen O'Dea Verified, John Reitmeyer Verified
| NJ Spotlight
From left, Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell, Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Motor Vehicle Commission acting Chair and Chief Administrator Rosalie Johnson at a news conference at the State House in Trenton on Tuesday. As early as October 2024, New Jersey lawmakers heard that some noncitizens were registering to vote through state Motor Vehicle Commission offices.
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Interview

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Who's your favorite fictional journalist?

Brenda Starr (wished I had her red hair)

How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?

Via email.

What tools and software do you use to do your job?

Microsoft suite, QGIS, Carto, Tableau, Google Drive, Cometdocs, etc