Donald Paul Lan Sr. (December 19, 1930 – April 29, 2019) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as

Secretary of State of New Jersey The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing New Jersey State Council on the Arts, artistic, cultural, and New Jersey Historical Com ...

from 1977 to 1982. He was appointed to the post by Governor

Brendan Byrne Brendan Thomas Byrne (April 1, 1924 – January 4, 2018) was an American attorney and Democratic Party politician who served as the 47th Governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982. Byrne began his career as a private attorney in Newark and Eas ...

. Lan has been the Union County Democratic Chairman.

Background

Lan was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, and was raised in

Maplewood, New Jersey Maplewood is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is an inner-ring suburban bedroom community of New York City in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's popula ...

. He graduated from Columbia High School and went to

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

. Lan served in the New Jersey Air National Guard and the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. Lan worked at his family's food processing company: Dell Products in Hillside, New Jersey. Lan died on April 29, 2019, at the age of 88.

Political career

A resident of Springfield Township (Union), Lan sought the Democratic nomination for governor in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

to succeed a term-limited Brendan Byrne, dropping out of the race in April 1981.Sullivan, Joseph F
"LAN QUITS GOVERNOR RACE; BYRNE MAKES DEGNAN AD"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', April 30, 1981. Accessed March 9, 2009.

References

1930 births 2019 deaths People from Maplewood, New Jersey Politicians from Newark, New Jersey New Jersey National Guard personnel Seton Hall University alumni Businesspeople from Newark, New Jersey New Jersey Democrats People from Springfield Township, Union County, New Jersey Secretaries of state of New Jersey 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century New Jersey politicians Columbia High School (New Jersey) alumni Businesspeople from Union County, New Jersey {{NewJersey-politician-stub