Jennifer Holdsworth-Kleinman

Jennifer Holdsworth-Kleinman

Clerk to the Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders

Age: 29

Place of Birth: Englewood, NJ

Where you live: Hoboken, NJ

First Job: Babysitter

What it taught me: Responsibility, accountability, multitasking and patience!

Status: Married

Family: Husband-Steven W. Kleinman, Esq.

Three things people would be surprised to know about me:

1. I love country music

2. I spent six days on Safari in Tanzania

3. I decided I wanted a career in politics and government at the age of three, when my parents took me to an event at the NJ State House in Trenton.

Best advice you could give someone starting out: Attend events in your industry and meet as many people as you can. Follow up with them and develop relationships. Contacts are very important!

Jennifer Holdsworth Kleinman began an interest in politics and government at a very young age through her maternal Grandfather, whose family hails from County Cork, and who was active in local and statewide campaigns.

In High School, Jennifer was selected as a Presidential Classroom Scholar and spent time in Washington, DC studying Congress and the Presidency. Jennifer went on to college at Rowan University and earned a degree in political science and international relations.

There, she served two terms as the Student Government President. Upon graduation, Jennifer became extremely active in several democratic campaigns. She then served as a Congressional Aide to Rep. Steven R. Rothman, where she focused on constituent services. Jennifer also served as the legislative aide to Bernadette P. McPherson, Chairwoman of the Bergen County Freeholder Board. Jennifer received her Juris Doctor from Seton Hall University School of Law in 2008.

While at Seton Hall Law, Jennifer studied human trafficking and war crimes in Africa. She spent time at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and with the Maasai tribe in Zanzibar.

Upon her return, Jennifer represented victims of human trafficking and indigent clients seeking political asylum with the law school’s Immigration and Human Rights Clinic. She continues to lecture on the subject of human rights to high school and college students.

Jennifer served as the law clerk to the Honorable Patrick J. Roma, Judge of the Superior Court, Criminal Division, before going on to private practice. Most recently, Jennifer was appointed the Clerk to the Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders, where she has served for the last seven months.