Kaleem Shabazz is a longtime resident of Atlantic City, New Jersey. A Graduate of Rutgers University, Council Member Shabazz is a product of local schools and a proud graduate of Atlantic City High School. First elected in 2015, Mr. Shabazz currently serves as the Third Ward Council Member in Atlantic City. He overwhelming won the Democratic Primary with more than 81% of the vote and ran unopposed in the General Election. He was also appointed to the Urban and Regional Growth Transition Advisory Committee for Governor Phil Murphy. Mr. Shabazz was re-elected Third Ward Council Member in 2019. He currently serves as the Chairperson of the City Council’s Planning and Development Committee. A longtime civil rights advocate, Mr. Shabazz is also an adjunct professor at Stockton University. He is President of the Atlantic City Branch of the NAACP and serves as President of Bridge of Faith; Advocacy Committee Chair and Board Member for the Atlantic County Coalition for a Safe Community; and member of the Coalition for Good Government. Mr. Shabazz is the recipient of many distinguished awards, including the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award; the Father Thom Schivago Humanitarian Award (from Beth El Synagogue); the Community Service Award from the Mainland NAACP; and the Community Service Award from the Fellowship of Churches. In 2017, he received the St. Augustine Episcopal Church Community Steward Award; an Award of Recognition from the Fellowship of Churches; and a Certificate of Appreciation from the Masjid Muhammad. Council Member Shabazz says one of his “proudest moments” was speaking at the United Nations in efforts to successfully stop a South African-based casino from coming to Atlantic City during the time of apartheid.
Council Member Shabazz has been married to his beautiful wife, Yolanda, for over forty years. They have one daughter, Anjail, and two grandsons, Emanuel (a Stockton University Graduate, who is currently receiving his Master’s in Counseling Degree at Seton Hall University) and Emil (a Rutgers University Graduate, who recently received his Master’s in Public Health Administration from Rutgers University). Mr. Shabazz is a self-proclaimed “nerd” who is an avid reader of the New York Times, Star Ledger, the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Press of Atlantic City on Sunday mornings during breakfast or brunch.