Former Maplewood Dem chair dies

Mary Romano, a fixture in Essex County politics for decades, passed away on November 25.  She was 95.

Romano served as Maplewood Democratic Municipal Chair and vice chair for many years.  She played a major role in the transition of Maplewood from a GOP stronghold where Republicans had a 5-0 lock on the Township Committee to one of the most heavily Democratic towns in the state.

She worked for Essex County as the secretary to the public information director from 1975 to 1987.  She also served as the corresponding secretary of the John J. Giblin Association.  Romano served as Volunteers Co-Chair for Jim Florio’s 1989 gubernatorial campaign and served on the staff for Florio’s inaugural committee.