Meet Chester Township's New Mayor Mike Inganamort

CHESTER, NJ — Marcia Asdal, the current Mayor of Chester Township, had previously announced her intention not to run for re-election in the 2022 election cycle, leaving many to speculate about who would fill her seat.

Michael Inganamort, a sitting council member, decided to run for the Republican nomination to succeed her and faced an uncontested race for the Mayoral seat.

Inganamort ran unopposed this past Tuesday and received 2,083 votes, according to unofficial results from the Morris County Clerk's Office, with 59 votes going to write-in candidates.

"We ran for mayor unopposed this year not because there wasn't great interest — hotly contested races up and down the ballot attest to that— but because we built a coalition over many years that values hard work, responsible decision-making, and commitment to the taxpayers of our community," Inganamort said.

Inganamort is in his fifth year as President of the Chester Township Council and his fifth year on the council. He is expected to be sworn in as Mayor of Chester Township this coming January.

Patch spoke to the new mayor to learn about his plans for Chester Township in 2023 and beyond:

What are the major challenges facing the community and how would you address them?

With sky-high inflation and ever-increasing mandates from state government, the municipal budget will be our biggest short-term challenge. We've known since the summer that the State of New Jersey was considering and ultimately adopted a roughly 22 percent increase to the healthcare premiums of public employees.

Controlling for all other spending, this will trigger an approximate 1% tax increase for Chester Township taxpayers next year. The State is also increasing the rates for the Public Employee Retirement System a full percentage point. Factor in significant spikes in fuel and other costs and our challenge at the start of the budget process will be to identify offsets.

New and effective shared service agreements have helped to bend the cost curve over the years, but it will take more than that to keep up with these spikes. Our budget meetings for next year have already begun and we are doing everything in our power to control municipal costs and hold the line on taxes.

What according to you is the best part about living in Chester Township?

Chester Township is as good as it gets, so it’s hard to pick just one thing. Kind people and high volunteerism. Excellent public schools. Abundant open space and agriculture. Highly professional and compassionate first responders. Infrastructure that delivers a return for residents. Responsive and cooperative professionals at town hall.

Given all that makes Chester Township great, there’s only one thing left: to make Chester Township the best small town in America.

What makes you the best person for this position?

It has been a privilege to serve on the Council for the past five years, three as Council President and two as finance liaison.

Since before the election, I’ve been meeting regularly with our administrator, CFO, and attorney with a particular focus on next year’s municipal budget. Happily, there is no learning curve. Chester Township won’t miss a beat.

Beyond administrative competence, we also need a vision for what Chester Township will look like in the future.

My vision for Chester is one where three generations of a family are able to enjoy a high quality of life together: where our children are safe and well-served by parks and recreation programs; adult residents can afford to invest in their homes; and our seniors enjoy quality services for the taxes they pay.