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===Local government=== [[Image:HarrisonNJTownHall.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Town Hall]] Harrison is governed under the [[Town (New Jersey)|Town]] form of New Jersey municipal government, one of 9 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form.<ref>[https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/inventory_of_municipal_forms_of_government_in_new_jersey.pdf ''Inventory of Municipal Forms of Government in New Jersey''], [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies, July 1, 2011. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The governing body is comprised of the mayor and Town Council, all of whom are elected on a partisan basis as part of the November general elections. A mayor is elected directly by the voters [[at-large]] to a four-year term of office. The Town Council includes eight members who are elected to serve four-year terms on a staggered basis, with one seat from each of the town's four [[ward (United States)|wards]] up for vote one year, one seat from each of the four wards up the next year and then two years with no elections.<ref name=DataBook>''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'', [[Rutgers University]] [[Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy]], March 2013, p. 142.</ref><ref>[https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/forms_of_municipal_government_in_new_jersey_9220.pdf#page=5 "Forms of Municipal Government in New Jersey"], p. 5. [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The town is divided into four electoral wards, with each ward represented by two council members, with a total of eight council members on the Town Council. Each ward is divided into three districts (except for the 1st Ward, which has two districts), for a total of 11 electoral districts. The head of the government is the mayor. The mayor chairs the Town Council and heads the municipal government. The Mayor may both vote on legislation before the council and veto ordinances. The Mayor's veto can be overruled by ΒΎ of the Town Council voting to overrule the veto. Town Council meetings are held on the first Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm (except in July and August, when no meetings are held, at the call of the chairman), in Council Chambers, which is located on the second floor of the Town Hall at 318 Harrison Avenue. Public Caucus Meetings are held at 6:30 pm. {{As of|2022}}, the Mayor of Harrison is [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] James A. Fife, who is serving a term of office ending December 31, 2022.<ref name=MayorCouncil/> Members of the Harrison Town Council are Laurence M. Bennett (D, 2022; Ward 3), Maria J. Camano (D, 2023; Ward 1), Michael T. Dolaghan (D, 2023; Ward 4), James P. Doran (D, 2022; Ward 4), Jesus R. Huaranga (D, 2022; Ward 1), Ellen Mendoza (D, 2022; Ward 2), Delfim Sarabando (D, 2023; Ward 3 β appointed to serve an unexpired term) and Eleanor Villalta (D, 2023; Ward 2).<ref name=MayorCouncil>[https://townofharrison.com/184/Mayor-City-Council Mayor and City Council], Town of Harrison. Accessed February 28, 2023.</ref><ref name=Budget2022>[https://www.townofharrison.com/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/161 2022 Municipal Data Sheet], Town of Harrison. Accessed May 22, 2022.</ref><ref name=HudsonDirectory>[https://www.hudsoncountyclerk.org/elected-officials/ Elected Officials], [[Hudson County, New Jersey]] Clerk. Accessed May 1, 2022.</ref><ref name=Hudson2021>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Hudson/111524/web.278093/#/summary General Election November 2, 2021 Official results], [[Hudson County, New Jersey]], updated November 17, 2021. Accessed January 1, 2022.</ref><ref name=Hudson2020>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Hudson/107150/web.264614/ Hudson County General Election November 3, 2020 Official Results], [[Hudson County, New Jersey]] Clerk, updated November 19, 2020. Accessed January 1, 2021.</ref><ref name=Hudson2019>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Hudson/98893/Web02.235350/#/ Hudson County General Election 2018 Statement of Vote November 5, 2019], [[Hudson County, New Jersey]] Clerk, updated November 13, 2019. Accessed January 1, 2020.</ref> Harrison had one of the [[List of longest-serving mayors in the United States|longest-serving mayors in United States history]], [[Frank E. Rodgers]], who was first elected in 1946, defeating incumbent Frederick J. Gassert who had served for 16 years, and served for 48 years, from 1947 to 1995, being elected to 24 two-year terms. He also served two terms in the [[New Jersey Senate|New Jersey State Senate]], from 1978 to 1984.<ref name="NYTRodgers">Nieves, Evelyn. [https://www.nytimes.com/1994/03/29/nyregion/our-towns-24-terms-are-enough-harrison-mayor-decides.html "Our Towns; 24 Terms Are Enough, Harrison Mayor Decides"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819063815/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/03/29/nyregion/our-towns-24-terms-are-enough-harrison-mayor-decides.html |date=August 19, 2016 }}, ''[[The New York Times]]'', March 29, 1994. Accessed July 9, 2016.</ref> While serving a term scheduled to end on December 31, 2014, longtime Mayor Raymond McDonough died on February 12, 2014, after suffering a heart attack at town hall.<ref>Staff. [http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2014/02/harrison_mayor_raymond_mcdonough_dies_of_massive_heart_attack_at_town_hall.html#incart_m-rpt-1 "Harrison Mayor Raymond McDonough dies after suffering massive heart attack at Town Hall"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223121124/http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2014/02/harrison_mayor_raymond_mcdonough_dies_of_massive_heart_attack_at_town_hall.html#incart_m-rpt-1 |date=February 23, 2014 }}, ''[[The Jersey Journal]]'', February 12, 2014.</ref> Later that month, the town council selected James Fife, a former [[Harrison High School (New Jersey)|Harrison High School]] principal, to complete term of McDonough's seat as mayor, which he had held since 1995.<ref name="JerseyJournal-2014-02-26">Staff. [http://www.nj.com/jjournal-news/index.ssf/2014/02/harrison_picks_ex-principal_fi.html "Harrison picks ex-principal Fife to succeed McDonough as mayor"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820091259/http://www.nj.com/jjournal-news/index.ssf/2014/02/harrison_picks_ex-principal_fi.html |date=August 20, 2014 }}, ''[[The Jersey Journal]]'', February 26, 2014. Accessed August 2, 2014. "Former Harrison High School Principal James A. Fife was selected by the Harrison Town Council yesterday to succeed Raymond J. McDonough as mayor. McDonough, who had been mayor since 1995, suffered a massive heart attack in his Town Hall office Feb. 12 and died."</ref> In 2018, the town had an average property tax bill of $11,109, the highest in the county, compared to an average bill of $8,767 statewide.<ref>Marcus, Samantha. [https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/04/these-are-the-towns-with-the-highest-property-taxes-in-each-of-njs-21-counties.html "These are the towns with the highest property taxes in each of N.J.βs 21 counties"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191105221007/https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/04/these-are-the-towns-with-the-highest-property-taxes-in-each-of-njs-21-counties.html |date=November 5, 2019 }}, NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], April 22, 2019. Accessed November 5, 2019. "The average property tax bill in New Jersey was $8,767 last year. But there can be big swings from town to town and county to county.... The average property tax bill in Harrison was $11,109 in 2018, the highest in Hudson County."</ref> In February 2022, the Town Council selected Delfim Sarabando from a list of three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fille the Ward 3 council seat expiring in December 2023 that had been held by Francisco Nascimento until he stepped down from office.<ref>[https://www.yourharrison.com/blog/portuguese-club-president-sworn-in-at-club "Portuguese Club President Sworn in at Club"], YourHarrison.com, February 23, 2022. Accessed May 22, 2022. "The Centro Romeu Cascaes Portuguese American Club President, Delfim Sarabando was sworn in to take over the seat of current Harrison Third Ward Councilmember Francisco Nascimento, a fellow Portuguese-American. Councilman Nascimento retired and stopped attending Mayor & Council meetings several months ago."</ref>
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