"I think it's fair to say we have a prominent seat at the table, and we couldn't say that before."
In a city so dependent on state and federal money, these political ties mean survival, politicians believe. Camden County Democrats even allied with some Republicans to sponsor the recovery law, though not its 2007 renewal.
Norcross said that donors were local residents and businesspeople of all political stripes who agreed with the Democrats' approach, and that most did not do business with government. Considering the hundreds of school boards, municipal councils, and other government bodies in New Jersey, that's difficult to verify.
A Cherry Hill resident and the son of a prominent South Jersey labor leader, Norcross, 53, hasn't been chairman of the party in nearly two decades. But insiders say he still calls the shots, and is one of the most powerful unelected people in New Jersey politics.
His businesses - both at Commerce Bank, where he led the insurance division, and at Conner Strong, the Marlton insurance firm he runs - have collected millions of dollars in governmental work.
Such contracts represent less than 5 percent of his business, Norcross said. And Conner Strong's ethics policy forbids executives and their relatives to contribute to state or local candidates.
Norcross' other role, as chairman of the board of trustees of Cooper University Hospital, where he has presided over a recent financial rebound and physical growth, has put a public face on his backroom persona.
The law, sponsored in part by Norcross' political allies, earmarked $12.35 million - the second-biggest recovery check - to Cooper's $220 million expansion. An additional $3 million was provided for its neonatal unit, and the hospital is in line to receive $9 million toward the construction of a new medical school run with Rowan University. Millions more bought property next to Cooper for future hospital-related growth.
