Woodland Park Mayor Keith Kazmark will resign next month to become the village manager in Ridgewood, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed.
Council President Tracy Kallert will become the acting mayor. Kazmark was up for re-election this year; he will drop out of the race, and Kallert is expected to become the new Democratic nominee.
Republicans did not nominate a candidate, leaving Kallert unopposed in the general election.
His new role in Ridgewood follows service as the Elmwood Park clerk and administrator and as the administrator in Parsippany. In addition to his mayoral duties, Kazmark also served as the administrator in Woodland Park.
Kazmark, 44, served three terms on the borough council – he was first elected in 2001 as a college student, defeating incumbents Jay Lijoli, Ruth Theodora and John Nagel — and three years as council president before he was elected mayor in 2011. He succeeded Pat Lepore, who had been elected to the Passaic County Board of Freeholders.
In his first mayoral race, Kazmark defeated independent Dominick Di Domenico a former councilman and school board member, by a 53%-35% margin, with Republican Patrick Murray finishing third. He never again had general election opposition.
Kazmark ran for Passaic County Clerk in 2009 after Democratic leaders declined to support Karen Brown for re-election. He was defeated by Republican Kristin Corrado, now a state senator, by 3,318 votes, 52%-48%.
In 2017 and 2018, Kazmark explored a bid for the Democratic nomination for Congress in New Jersey’s 11th district but wound up becoming a key supporter of Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair), who flipped the district.
Anthony DeNova, the former Passaic County administrator, will serve as acting administrator while Woodland Park conducts a search for a replacement.
He will remain Woodland Park’s Democratic municipal chairman.