# Mayor of New Brunswick, New Jersey

Elections in New Jersey :
Federal government
U.S. President
1788-89
1792
1796
1800
1804
1808
1812
1816
1820
1824
1828
1832
1836
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
Dem
2008
Rep
Dem
2012
2016
Dem
2020
Dem
2024
Dem
Rep
U.S. Senate
1788
1790
1790 (sp)
1792
1796
1796 (sp)
1798
1799 (sp)
1801 (sp)
1803 (sp)
1804
1808
1809
1809 (sp)
1810
1815
1816 (sp)
1817
1820
1823
1823 (sp)
1826
1826 (sp)
1829
1829 (sp)
1833
1835
1839
1840
1845
1846
1851
1853 (sp)
1857
1858
1863 (sp)
1864
1866 (sp)
1867 (sp)
1869
1875
1877
1881
1883
1886
1889
1893
1895
1899
1901
1902 (sp)
1905
1907
1911
1913
1916
1918
1918 (sp)
1922
1924
1928
1930
1930 (sp)
1932 (sp)
1934
1936
1938 (sp)
1940
1942
1944 (sp)
1948
1954
1958
1960
1964
1966
1970
1972
1976
1978
1982
1984
1988
1990
1994
1996
2000
2002
2006
2008
2012
2013 (sp)
2014
2018
2020
2024
2026
U.S. House of Representatives
1789
1791
1792
1794
1795 (sp AL)
1797
1798
1800
1803
1804
1806
1808 (sp AL)
1808
1810 (sp AL)
1810
1814 (sp 3rd)
1813
1814
1816
1818
1820
1821 (sp AL)
1822
1824
1826
1828
1828 (sp AL)
1830
1832
1834
1836
1836
1838
1840
1842
1844
1846
1850
1852
1854
1856
1858
1860
1862
1864
1866
1868
1870
1872
1874
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1913 (sp 6th)
1914
1916
1920
1924
1926
1928
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1948
1950
1951 (sp 9th)
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1968
1972
1980
1984
1988
1988 (sp 3rd)
1990
1990 (sp 1st)
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2006
2006 (5th)
2006 (12th)
2008
2010
2012
2012 (sp 10th)
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
State government
General elections
2009
2010
2015
2017
2019
2021
2023
Gubernatorial elections
1843
1844
1847
1850
1853
1856
1859
1862
1865
1868
1871
1874
1877
1880
1883
1886
1889
1892
1895
1898
1901
1904
1907
1910
1913
1916
1919
1922
1925
1928
1931
1934
1937
1940
1943
1946
1949
1953
1957
1961
1965
1969
1973
1977
1981
1985
1989
1993
1997
2001
2005
2009
2013
2017
2021
2025
Senate elections
1873
1957
1959
1961
1963
1965
1967
1971
1973
1977
1981
1983
1987
1991
1993
1997
2001
2003
2007
2011
2013
2017
2021
2023
General Assembly elections
1985
1987
1989
1991
2015
2017
2019
2021
2023 :
Newark
Mayoral elections
1970
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
2022 :
Jersey City
Mayoral elections
2001
2004
2005
2009
2013
2017
2021
2025 :
Hoboken
Mayoral elections
2005
2017
2021 :
Atlantic City
Mayoral elections
2017
2021 :
vte :
The Mayor of New Brunswick is head of the executive branch of the government of New Brunswick, New Jersey.
The first four mayors are considered "colonial" in that their power stemmed from royal charters granted by the British monarchy. Beginning in 1784, the leader of the city served pursuant to a charter granted by the State of New Jersey.
The leaders of New Brunswick have not always been elected. In the early years of the city, its leaders were selected by the British monarchy, and then later by the State Legislature of New Jersey. During the period of time when the city's third charter was in effect, 1784 to 1801, New Brunswick's top official was referred to as president of the city.
From 1915 to 1970, every four years, the city would elect five commissioners, who would then select from among themselves who would be given the title of mayor. Though not always the case, the title would often go to the candidate who performed best in the preceding election.
| # | Term of office | Mayor | Born and died | Notes and references |
| 61 | 1991– | James M. Cahill | | First elected in November 1990, Cahill was re-elected in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022. Currently in his ninth term as mayor, he has been in office for 33 years, 269 days and is the New Brunswick's longest-serving mayor in history. |
| 60 | 1979–1991 | John A. Lynch Jr. | born 1938 | First elected in November 1978, and re-elected in 1982 and 1986. He is the son of the prior mayor of the same name. Like his father, John Lynch, Jr. also ascended to a seat in the State Senate. Lynch, Jr. did not run for re-election in 1990, the same year that he became president of the State Senate. Son of former mayor John A. Lynch, Sr. |
| 59 | 1978 | Gilbert L. Nelson | 1942-2011 | After the resignation of Richard J. Mulligan, Nelson was appointed mayor on September 21, 1978. He finished out Mulligan's term and did not run for a full term. |
| 58 | 1975–1978 | Richard J. Mulligan | born 1942 | Elected in November 1974 as an independent candidate. Resigned during his term and moved to Jackson, Wyoming. Son of former Mayor Richard V. Mulligan. |
| 57 | 1974 | Aldrage B. Cooper II | 1937-2016 | After the resignation of Patricia Q. Sheehan, Cooper was appointed mayor on February 20, 1974 to finish Mayor Sheehan's term, Cooper was New Brunswick's first African-American mayor. Margaret Bertalan replaced Cooper on the City Council, while Cooper unsuccessfully sought a full term as mayor in the 1974 election. |
| 56 | 1967–1974 | Patricia Q. Sheehan | born 1934 | First elected to the City Commission in May 1967, Sheehan was selected by her commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor, becoming the city's first female mayor. After voters changed to a new form of government with direct mayor elections, Sheehan was elected to the job in November 1970. She was the last mayor under the commission form of government, and the first under the new form. Sheehan resigned from office to become the Commissioner of the NJ Department of Community Affairs. |
| 54 | 1955–1967 | Chester W. Paulus | | Paulus was again selected by his fellow commissioners to serve as mayor in 1955. He was re-elected in 1959 and 1963, and continued to serve as mayor. After 24 years in elected office, Paulus lost his 1967 re-election campaign. |
| 55 | 1951–1954 | John A. Lynch, Sr. | 1908–1978 | Lynch was appointed to the City Commission on December 3, 1946 (replacing Harry W. Dwyer), and was first elected to body in 1947. Lynch was re-elected in 1951, and selected by his commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor. In 1955, Lynch was re-elected to the commission, but resigned to focus on his campaign for State Senate. |
| 54 | 1943–1951 | Chester W. Paulus | | First elected to the City Commission in May 1943, Paulus was selected by his commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor. He was re-elected in 1947 and again served as mayor. After being re-elected to the commission in 1951, he was replaced as mayor. Paulus would be re-installed as mayor after Lynch left the commission in 1955. |
| 53 | 1942–1943 | Harry W. Dwyer | | Dwyer was first elected to the City Commission in May 1939, and in 1942, he was selected by his commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor after the resignation of Richard V. Mulligan. Dwyer won re-election to the commission in 1943, but did not continue as mayor. He resigned from the commission to become City Clerk on December 3, 1946. |
| 52 | 1939–1942 | Richard V. Mulligan | | Mulligan was appointed to the City Commission June 28, 1938 (replacing Samuel D. Hoffman), and was first elected in May 1939. Mulligan was then selected by his commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor. Mulligan resigned from elected office to take a job with Johnson & Johnson, and Harry W. Dwyer was elevated to the mayor position, while Herbert Dailey was selected to replace Mulligan on the commission March 3, 1942. |
| 51 | 1935–1939 | Frederick F. Richardson | | First elected to the City Commission in May 1935, and selected by his commissioner colleagues to serve as mayor. Richardson won re-election to the commission in 1939, but did not continue as mayor. |
| 48 | 1918–1935 | John J. Morrison | | An elected member of the inaugural City Commission, Morrison was chosen by his colleagues to take on the position of mayor after death of Edward Farrington. Morrison had previously served as Mayor from 1910 to 1914. He was re-elected to the Commission in 1923, 1927, and 1931. In 1935, he lost his re-election campaign. |
| 50 | 1915–1918 | Edward Farrington | ?-1918 | Elected to the City Commission on April 6, 1915, Farrington would become New Brunswick's first mayor under the Commission form of government. He was selected from among his fellow commissioners to serve as mayor, led the city government during World War I, but died in office during the 1918 flu epidemic. |
| 49 | 1914–1915 | Austin Scott | 1848–1922 | Elected in November 1913, Scott was a former Rutgers University president. He was New Brunswick's last mayor under aldermanic form of government, and his term was cut short when voters approved a change to a different form of government. |
| 48 | 1910–1913 | John J. Morrison | | First elected mayor in November 1909. He was re-elected in 1911, and later served as mayor under the commission form of government. |
| 47 | 1908–1909 | W. Edwin Florance | | Elected in November 1907. |
| 46 | 1906–1907 | Drury W. Cooper | | Elected in November 1905. |
| 45 | 1904–1905 | William S. Meyers | | Elected in November 1903. |
| 44 | 1902–1903 | George A. Viehmann | | Elected in November 1901 after a state law abolished spring municipal elections. |
| 43 | 1895–1901 | Nicholas Williamson | | Elected in April 1895, April 1897, and April 1899. His final term was extended until December 31, 1901 by a state law that moved local elections from April to November. |
| 42 | 1889–1895 | James H. Van Cleef | | |
| 41 | 1881–1889 | William S. Strong | | |
| 40 | 1879–1881 | T. DeWitt Reiley | | |
| 27 | 1877–1879 | Lyle Van Nuis | | Previously served as mayor from 1856-1857 and 1861-1863. |
| 39 | 1875–1877 | Isaiah Rolfe | | |
| 38 | 1873–1875 | Thomas M. DeRussy | | |
| 37 | 1871–1873 | Garret Conover | 1817–? | |
| 36 | 1869–1871 | George J. Janeway | | |
| 35 | 1867–1869 | Miles Ross | 1827–1903 | |
| 34 | 1865–1867 | John T. Jenkins | | He resigned from office. |
| 33 | 1865 | Augustus T. Stout | 1816-1865 | He died in office shortly after being elected. |
| 32 | 1863–1865 | Richard MacDonald | 1803-1894 | He was the first mayor under the seventh city charter of 1863. |
| 27 | 1861–1863 | Lyle van Nuis | | Previously served as mayor 1856-1857. Would go on to serve as mayor again from 1877-1879. |
| 31 | 1860–1861 | Ezekiel M. Patterson | | |
| 30 | 1859–1860 | Peter Conover Onderdonk | 1811-1894 | |
| 29 | 1858–1859 | Tunis Van Doren Hoagland | 1813-1872 | Hoagland (also spelled "Hoogland") was elected to fill vacancy created by John Bayard Kirkpatrick's resignation. |
| 28 | 1857–1858 | John Bayard Kirkpatrick | | Brother of former New Brunswick Mayor Littleton Kirkpatrick and grandson of former New Brunswick President John Bubenheim Bayard. Resigned from office. |
| 27 | 1856–1857 | Lyle van Nuis | | Would return as mayor for two more non-consecutive terms, from 1861-1863 and 1877-1879. |
| 26 | 1855–1856 | Abraham V. Schenk | | |
| 25 | 1853–1855 | John B. Hill | | |
| 20 | 1852–1853 | John Van Dyke | 1807–1878 | Previously served as Mayor 1846–1847. |
| 24 | 1851–1852 | Peter N. Wyckoff | | |
| 23 | 1849–1851 | David Fitz Randolph | | |
| 22 | 1848–1849 | Augustus F. Taylor | | He was a physician, and son of previous Mayor Augustus R. Taylor. |
| 21 | 1847–1848 | Martin A. Howell | | |
| 20 | 1846–1847 | John Van Dyke | 1807–1878 | First term as Mayor. He returned for another term in 1852-1853 |
| 19 | 1845–1846 | William H. Leupp | | |
| 18 | 1843–1845 | John Acken | | |
| 17 | 1842–1843 | Fitz Randolph Smith | | |
| 16 | 1841–1842 | Littleton Kirkpatrick | 1787–1859 | A former surrogate Middlesex County, Kirkpatrick defeated incumbent Mayor David W. Vail at the annual town meeting by a vote of 358-304. Kirkpatrick was the grandson of John Bubenheim Bayard, former president of New Brunswick, and went on to be elected to the US Congress, where he served from 1843-1845. His brother John Bayard Kirkpatrick would serve as mayor from 1857-1858. |
| 15 | 1840–1841 | David W. Vail | ?-1842 | |
| 12 | 1838–1840 | Augustus R. Taylor | 1782-? | Taylor, who previously served as Mayor from 1824 to 1829, resumed the role of mayor in 1838. |
| 14 | 1830–1838 | Cornelius Low Hardenbergh | 1790–1860 | Hardenbergh was elected "by plurality of voices" at the 1830 town meeting. |
| 13 | 1829–1830 | J.R. Hardenbergh | | |
| 12 | 1824–1829 | Augustus R. Taylor | | Taylor was a physician who took over as acting mayor after the death of James Schureman. He was officially appointed mayor on November 19, 1824. |
| 11 | 1821–1824 | James Schureman | 1756–1824 | Schureman returned to the city's top position for a third time following the death of James Bennett. Schureman also died in office. |
| 10 | 1813–1821 | James Bennett | ?-1821 | Bennett was chosen to replace James Schureman after his resignation. Bennett died in office. |
| 7 | 1801–1813 | James Schureman | 1756–1824 | This was Schureman's second term as the city's top official, having previously served as president of the city from 1792-1793. He was appointed to serve by the New Jersey Legislature under the 1801 charter, which resumed the use of the word "mayor" for the position. Schureman resigned in 1813, but would return to the mayor role from 1821-1824. |
| 9 | 1796–1801 | Abraham Schuyler | | |
| 6 | 1794–1796 | John Bubenheim Bayard | 1738–1807 | Previously served as president of New Brunswick 1792-1793. Bayard returned for another term as the city's leader in 1794, becoming the first to serve two non-consecutive terms leading the city government. He went on to become a judge in the court of common pleas. |
| 8 | 1793–1794 | Lewis Dunham | | He was a physician and the son of former mayor Azariah Dunham. |
| 7 | 1792–1793 | James Schureman | 1756-1824 | Prior to becoming president of New Brunswick, Schureman was a member of the Continental Congress and the 1st United States Congress, leaving federal office in 1791. He returned to Congress in 1797 and was elevated to the US Senate from 1799-1801, before returning to become mayor of New Brunswick twice more, serving terms from 1801-1813 and 1821-1824. |
| 6 | 1790–1792 | John Bayard | 1738–1807 | Served as a Colonel in Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Bayard was also a member of the Continental Congress and Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly before relocating to New Brunswick. In 1790, he was selected to replace Azariah Dunham as the second president of New Brunswick under the state charter. He would return for another term as president of New Brunswick from 1794-1796, and later became a judge. |
| 5 | 1784–1790 | Azariah Dunham | 1718–1790 | First president of New Brunswick under the state charter. Died in office. |
| 4 | 1778–1784 | William Harrison | | Harrison took over as mayor after the death of William Ouke, and was the last colonial mayor of New Brunswick. His term ended when New Jersey granted New Brunswick's State Charter on September 30, 1784. |
| 3 | 1762–1778 | William Ouke | | As the city's recorder, Ouke took over as mayor after the death of James Hude, and was installed as mayor under the city's second royal charter, which was dated February 12, 1763. Ouke died in office after a combined 42 years as alderman, recorder, or mayor. |
| 2 | 1747–1762 | James Hude | | After more than 16 years as the city's recorder, Hude was appointed the mayor by order of the colonial governor of New Jersey, Jonathan Belcher, in August 1747. He died in office in November 1762. |
| 1 | 1730–1747 | Thomas Farmer | 1675- | Thomas Farmer (sometimes spelled Farmar) was the first mayor of New Brunswick, appointed under the royal charter granted December 30, 1730 by Colonel John Montgomerie, the colonial governor of New York and New Jersey. Farmer served for more than 16 years, until mid-1747. |