BY ROBERT SCHWANEBERG
Star-Ledger Staff

The freshman class of state lawmakers that will be sworn in Tuesday includes a former NBA coach, a cancer survivor, the widow of a former assemblyman and the first Latina and first Asian-American elected to the Senate.

Four new Assembly members were in the Legislature before and are back after years away from Trenton -- including one whose last stint was 36 years ago.

A dozen new lawmakers hold other elected positions. This is the last batch of rookies who will be allowed to keep their other elected positions before a dual-office-holding ban kicks in next month.

But what is most noteworthy is that there are so many new legislators -- and that so many of them are women.

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