Councilwoman Lonni Miller Ryan Running For Wayne Mayor

WAYNE, N.J. — Council President Lonni Miller Ryan will challenge Mayor Chris Vergano in June's Republican primary election.

Miller Ryan announced her intent to run against Vergano in a letter to the Passaic County Republican Committee dated Feb. 6. She is seeking the endorsement of the Wayne and Passaic County Regular Republican organizations.

Miller Ryan, a mother of three and a former reporter for the New York Post, is serving her second term on the council. She first got involved with politics when she helped Rumana get elected to his first mayoral term in 2001. She was first elected to an at-large seat in 2010 and was reelected in 2013. She has been council president for two years.

"It's not a decision I made lightly, but one that I made knowing that I want to make a difference in our town," Miller Ryan said in the letter. "We're at a crossroads, facing extreme development and economic pressure. The actions we take now will shape our collective future."

Miller Ryan will be screened by the committee Feb. 28.

RELATED: Chris Vergano Announces He Is Running For A 3rd Mayoral Term

Vergano is in his 10th year as mayor. He announced at a council meeting Jan. 18 his intention to run for reelection. Vergano, a lifelong Wayne resident, became mayor in 2008 when he was appointed to replace Scott Rumana, who was elected to the state Assembly. Vergano was elected to his first full term in 2009 and to his second in 2013, soundly defeating his opponents both times.

Before becoming mayor, Vergano was a councilman for six years and a Board of Education trustee for nine.

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Photo: Lonni Miller Ryan, center, and the rest of the Township Council