Bruce Harris | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Chatham Borough, New Jersey | |
| In office January 2012 –December 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Nelson Vaughan |
| Succeeded by | Thaddeus Kobylarz |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Republican |
| Domestic partner | Marc Boisclair [1] |
| Residence | Chatham Borough,New Jersey |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Bruce A. Harris is an American lawyer and politician from New Jersey. A Republican,he previously served as Mayor of Chatham Borough,New Jersey from January 2012 to December 2019. Prior to that,he served on the Chatham Borough Council from 2004 to 2012. Since leaving office, [2] Harris was appointed to the New Jersey State Planning Commission,which he has been a member of since February 2020. [3]
Harris attended Amherst College,graduating magna cum laude. He earned an MBA from the Boston University Graduate School of Management and a JD from Yale Law School. [4]
After eight years on the Chatham Borough Council,Harris ran for mayor of Chatham Borough in November 2011,defeating Democratic incumbent Nelson Vaughan. [5] A Republican,Harris took office as mayor in January 2012. [6]
On January 23,2012,Governor Chris Christie nominated Harris to an open seat on the New Jersey Supreme Court. [7] His nomination was rejected on May 31,2012,by the Senate Judiciary Committee in a 7–6 vote that was largely along party lines. His lack of courtroom experience was cited by the opposition. [8] Harris is openly gay. If his nomination had been confirmed,he would have been the first openly gay New Jersey Supreme Court justice. [9] [10]
Harris served as general counsel of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority from 2012 to 2018. [11]
In April 2019,Harris announced that he would not seek re-election as mayor of Chatham Borough. [2] He was replaced by Democrat Thaddeus "Thad" Kobylarz,who had been on the borough council before running for mayor. [12] In February 2020,Democratic Governor Phil Murphy appointed the Republican Harris to the New Jersey State Planning Commission. [3]