Hoboken Mayoral Candidate Profiles: Ruben Ramos Jr.

HOBOKEN, NJ — 4th Ward Councilman Ruben Ramos Jr. is among six candidates running become the next mayor of Hoboken. Over the next two weeks, Patch will be posting their profiles and Q&A. Ramos' answers are below. Come back to Hoboken Patch to read them all.

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The elections are non-partisan. Residents can choose a mayoral candidate and any three council members.

Hoboken's salary ordinance states that the next mayor will be paid $130,000. The annual salary for a member of the Hoboken City Council is $35,000. The council president and vice president will start at $40,000 and $37,500, plus optional benefits.

The list of people who filed to run are:

• Dini Ajmani, former state and U.S. Treasury official
• Tiffanie Fisher, 2nd Ward councilwoman
• Emily Jabbour, councilwoman-at-large
• Ruben Ramos Jr., 4th Ward councilman
• Michael Russo, 3rd Ward councilman
• Patricia Waiters, who has run for council and school board

PRIOR REPORTING: More Candidates Join Hoboken Mayor's Race

Candidate Profile And Questions: Ruben Ramos Jr.

Biographical Questions

Name: Ruben Ramos

Age: 52

Length of time you've lived in Hoboken: Lifelong resident

Public service in Hoboken: 4th Ward Council member, former state Assemblyman

Family: Married to Norma, three children

Do you have immediate family members working for local government? Who? No

Do you have a full-time job? If so, what is it? If not, how do you earn a living? Public school teacher in Paterson, NJ

How many properties do you own in Hudson County? I own my home and I am a partial owner of another property

Educational background: B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University, with a major in Political Science

Other experience: If you are supporting a ticket of council candidates, please state their names: Laura Miani, Britta Ouano, Alfredo Veloce

Website where voters can find more information: https://www.ramos4hoboken.com/

Longer Questions

Answers must be kept to 250 words or fewer.

1. Since all of the candidates have experience with local or state government, voters may not know the differences. Please tell us what makes you more qualified for the job than all of your opponents. I was first elected to the City Council in 1999 as the youngest elected official in Hoboken’s history, and since then I have dedicated my life to public service both in my profession as a public school teacher and as an elected official, both here as 4th Ward Councilman and as a former State Assemblyman. As a lifelong Hoboken resident, I’ve seen how our community has grown and changed over the years and I have a strong understanding of what our local government needs in order to deliver the progress and services that residents deserve. I believe that my experience and the vision that our team is running on to get our city back to basics sets us apart from the competition.

2. What is the biggest problem in Hoboken, and how will you address it? The biggest challenge facing Hoboken is that our local government has failed to keep its focus on the local issues that need to be addressed in order to protect our residents’ quality of life. We’ve become too distracted by national issues and divisive political fights, and that has resulted in a lack of attention being paid to concerns like public safety, quality of life, property taxes, road infrastructure and more. I’m running for Mayor to get our city back to basics by delivering for the community on critical priorities like public safety, quality of life, programs for children and seniors, and housing affordability.

3. For whom did you vote in the 2024 presidential election? How do you see national politics affecting Hoboken in the next few years? As a proud Democrat, I voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 Presidential election but I believe strongly that we need to keep our local government focused on local issues and not become distracted by the national political conversation. Many people in our community have different views on national politics, but we can all agree that we need to do a better job of paving our streets, keeping our property taxes stable and making sure we can all feel safe in our neighborhoods.

4. Hoboken residents have been promised a community pool for decades and still don't have one, despite updates each spring about a plan. There's also little citywide access to the existing pools in town. If you are elected mayor, by what year can residents expect a pool? Please be specific. If you can't make that promise, why not? One of my first priorities as Mayor will be to advance a public-private partnership to create a new Recreation Center at city-owned property on 15th and Jefferson streets that will include an indoor swimming pool for residents. We can accomplish this by creating a mixed-use development at that site and working with the developer to build out the space for the Recreation Center at a much lower cost, and then working with the community to decide on specific programs and facilities that will be offered there. I believe that we can deliver on this promise and open the facility within the first two years of my term in office.

5. Do you believe Hoboken's current rent control ordinance should stay as is? If not, what changes would you make, and do you believe other rent-related laws are needed? I think we need to do much more to ensure that middle class families like mine can afford to live in Hoboken and won’t get priced out like so many others have. That starts with stronger rent control enforcement to protect tenants, but we also need to build more new affordable housing by speeding up permitting, creating tougher inclusionary housing rules that deliver results and much more. Hoboken can be a place where people of all incomes live, grow, and stay. But only if we stop treating housing like an afterthought. This is the crisis of our time and it demands action, not excuses.

6. It's been said that the city has become unaffordable to some long-time residents. Some have suggested creative solutions to cut costs, such as $5 ferry rides. Recreation programs have been made free to residents who qualify for school lunches -- but the federal cutoff is an annual income of $59,478 for a family of four, perhaps not a lot to live on in Hoboken. What is one creative solution you'd like to try to make living here more affordable? I proposed the $5 Ferry plan a few months ago and we’ve gotten a very positive response from residents who recognize that the city needs to do more to make commuting affordable and reliable. The truth is that the PATH isn’t getting better and the Port Authority isn’t doing anything to fix it, so I believe we need to look at what is actually in the city’s power to improve public transit and make it more affordable.

7. Have you taken developer contributions to your campaign? Do you think it's a problem for a Hoboken candidate to take them? Our campaign accepts contributions from a wide variety of donors who support our vision for getting Hoboken back to basics and making our city more affordable, and that has included everything from individual residents to labor unions to developers who are committed to providing the affordable housing, infrastructure investments and community amenities we need. We're in a housing crisis and it's important to work with all stakeholders to solve it, and I will continue to always stand up for my values and the priorities that Hoboken needs to pursue.

8. Which toppings do you normally get on your pizza, and what are some things that should never go on a pizza? I usually go with either pepperoni pizza or plain — just like our campaign, I like to keep my pizza basic. Pineapple doesn’t belong on pizza, ever. Thank you for your time.

Controversies And Candidates

The General Election will be held on Nov. 4.

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