Gov. Murphy Swears In Wayne's New Councilwoman

WAYNE, NJ – Gov. Phil Murphy and U.S. Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill were among the public officials who came out Wednesday for the official swearing in of Wayne’s newest councilwoman.

Francine Ritter, who was elected to represent Ward Five, is the governing body’s lone Democrat and beat out incumbent Republican councilwoman Lucy “Aileen” Rivera on Election Day.

Murphy administered the oath of office to Ritter, an attorney who moved to Wayne about five years ago. The governor told TapInto Ritter "is a very dear friend" and he was "very honored to be here to support her."

While campaigning for the seat, Ritter told Patch she was running "to bring transparency, accountability and respectful government to all of Wayne."

"My priorities for Wayne include: lowering property taxes through increased shared services and organized business development efforts, enhanced quality of life including improved driver and pedestrian safety, and proactive open space and environmental protection management," she also said.

Rich Jasterzbski of Ward One, Al Sadowski of Ward Two, Franco Mazzei of Ward Three, Joe Scuralli of Ward Four and Jon Ettman of Ward Six were also sworn in to new terms during the reorganization meeting.