Christopher Vergano will return as the mayor of Wayne. In Tuesday’s mayoral elections, Vergano won the election by 57.13% with more than 12,000 voters. With these results, Vergano was reelected as mayor for the fifth time in fifteen years.
Vergano defeated Democratic candidate Donald Pavlak, a longtime Wayne resident who has worked closely with the town for many years. He is the current president of the Board of Education and has been on the Board for 20 years. He was also a part of the Wayne Police force for 34 years before retiring in 2020.
According to the Wayne Republicans website, Vergano was born and raised in Wayne and has lived in Wayne since 1962 with his wife, Deneen, near the Packanack Lake. Vergano is employed by Hishi Plastics USA and is the Vice President and General Manager of their manufacturing facility. His plans for Wayne citizens include keeping the residential property tax as low as possible, maintaining Wayne’s safety, supporting youth and seniors, opposing state-mandated overdevelopment, promoting economic growth in Wayne, addressing flooding issues, and enhancing accessibility.
The only controversy involving Vergano was in 2023 during an attempt to give the mayoral position a large pay raise. This caused criticism, and citizens even started an online petition. Due to public reactions, Vergano withdrew the proposal before it could be put to a vote.
Jessica Zarin, a 9th grader at Wayne Hills, wants to see Vergano “lower taxes” for Wayne residents as well as improve education and career planning by letting “kids decide what to do with their lives.”
Wayne citizens reflect the same values as Jessica and want to see changes in public school education, as well as a more affordable environment for the citizens. Wayne’s parents want to see public school education be more customized towards each child’s specific needs. There should be more options available to children about their career plans and futures. Additionally, Wayne residents are hopeful to see a decrease in taxes, as the property tax rates are higher than the statewide average property taxes.
