Joyce Rudin Launches Bid For West Orange Town Council: 2024 Election

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A community activist who has worked as a journalist and a financial administrator is throwing her hat into the ring for a spot on the West Orange Township Council.

West Orange resident Joyce Rudin recently announced that she is running for a council seat in the town’s 2024 non-partisan municipal election on Nov. 5. See Related: West Orange Town Council Race Heats Up (2024 Candidate List)

Rudin delivered 498 signed petitions to the town clerk’s office on July 9 in support of her candidacy.

Rudin has a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and is a former journalist with NPR and on-air reporter for PBS. She has served on the township’s Open Space and Recreation Commission, chaired the Coalition to Save South Mountain, and is a co-founder of Our Green West Orange, a local environmental advocacy group. She is married to Rabbi Moshe Rudin of Congregation Adath Shalom in Morris Plains. They are a blended family with three adult children, two of whom graduated from West Orange High School.

Learn more about her campaign here.

According to Rudin, she is pledging not to accept campaign contributions from “anyone seeking a contract with the town.” Rudin also said she “will not make personal attacks on other candidates” – a problem that other voters are also getting tired of.

“People really want change,” Rudin said. “They see their property taxes rising, council members bickering among themselves and chaotic development that causes congestion and increases the risks of flooding and property damage.”

According to her campaign team, Rudin’s plans if elected include:

OPPOSE UNFAIR TAX BREAKS – “In 2023, town council members voted to increase your property taxes by 6% to pay for the revenue lost on no-bid contracts, giveaway tax breaks for developers (PILOTS), and exorbitant administrative salaries. Joyce will oppose tax breaks for developers that cause the rest of us to pay among the highest taxes in Essex County. She will bring needed transparency to our budget process. A trained reporter, Joyce will expose cronyism, corruption and waste.”

IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE – “Your home is the core of your family's life. For most of us, it is also our biggest financial asset. We live in West Orange to enjoy our homes and neighborhoods. Joyce will support only smart development. She will protect our neighborhoods, environmentally sensitive areas, and historic sites from overdevelopment that causes flooding and lowers our property values. One devastating landslide on Northfield Avenue that rendered 45 families homeless was enough. Progress is not just about development. It's about protecting and improving our quality of life.”

ENSURE TRANSPARENCY – “Joyce will not accept campaign contributions from anyone doing business with or seeking a contract with the township. She has signed a pledge to adhere to a Campaign Code of Ethics. For Joyce, clean money means clean elections. Council decisions must be unencumbered by insider influence.”

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