West Orange Councilwoman Joyce Rudin announced her campaign for the Essex County township’s mayorship on Friday, becoming the fourth candidate to join the November non-partisan race.
The first-term incumbent, Susan McCartney, is planning to seek re-election. Board of Education President Brian Rock and Councilwoman Tammy Williams are already in the race. So is Phil Orphanidis, a former chief of staff to Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop; Orphanidis is involved in a “do you know who I am” issue following his arrest last year. Some say Councilwoman Susan Scarpa and Councilman Joe Krakoviak are also looking to run.
The filing deadline is August 20.
Rudin is a former TV reporter and member of the West Orange Open Space Commission. She won a township council seat in 2024.
Her announcement focused on increasing “sunlight” in town hall and challenging overdevelopment.
“On our town council, I’ve worked to stop wasteful spending and elevate our township’s livability,” Rudin said in an announcement video. “Since you elected me, I led the fight and saved West Orange taxpayers $ 3.4 million in spending without cutting essential services or staff.”
Rudin says that West Orange “is in danger of overdevelopment, erecting high-rise buildings that cause flooding without a thought of how they fit into our neighborhoods.”
“You can trust me to do what’s right for West Orange, because I’m already doing it,” she said.
McCartney became the township’s first woman mayor after Robert Parisi retired after twelve years in office. She defeated Cindy Malute-Brown, 31%-26%, with 23% for Bill Rutherford and 20% for Krakoviak