Jamaica-Born Elsie Foster Elected New Mayor of Highland Park, New Jersey

By the Jamaican Embassy In Washington DC
Guest Contributor

New Jersey, USA (Sunday, February 5, 2023) —  Jamaica-born Elsie Foster is the new Mayor of the Borough of Highland Park in Middlesex County, New Jersey. She was elected during a special Borough Council meeting late last month.

Foster, who is the Council President and had been Acting Mayor, since the start of the year, will serve as Mayor until the end of 2023.

She replaces former Mayor, Gayle Brill Mittler, who resigned on December 31.

The new Highland Park Mayor has identified safety, affordability and downtown development as among her priorities.

In her remarks following her election, Mayor Foster said, “I’m complimented by the confidence my colleagues on the Council have placed in me.”

“I look forward to working with them, and with the residents, to improve on the affordability, sense of community, and opportunities in our town,” she added.

Mayor Foster, who hails from Deeside in Trelawny, has given some 22 years of service on the Borough Council and over that time, has served on all the Council’s committees. She was Borough Council President for eight years.

Mayor Foster is the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Aunt Elsie’s Homestays, an international student housing organisation.

She is also the legislative liaison to the State of New Jersey Civil Service Commission and a founding partner of JamPhil Consultants, LLC.