Biography
George Helmy was born in Jersey City and raised in Glen Ridge where he played for the high school basketball and football teams. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree at Rutgers University, and then a master’s degree in finance and management from Harvard.
George’s professional journey includes service with two Fortune 100 companies. He began his career as a public servant working for Senator Frank Lautenberg as a constituent advocate in 2012 before transitioning to State Director for Senator Cory Booker in 2014. In 2019, Governor Phil Murphy appointed George as Chief of Staff to serve the people of New Jersey. George is the longest serving Chief of Staff to a governor in New Jersey’s history.
He left the Governor’s office in 2023 to take on an executive role with RWJBarnabas Health and become a commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
On August 16, 2024, Governor Murphy appointed George to the United States Senate. George took office on September 9th, becoming the sixth Arab American and first Coptic Christian to serve in the Senate.
He currently lives in Morris County with his wife and two children.
George sits on the Finance Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, and the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, where he is the Chair of the Securities, Insurance, and Investment Subcommittee.