About Paul
I bought my first home in Bernards Township in 1980. My kids went to St. James School and graduated from Ridge High. After retiring from a career in law, I started my own consulting firm focused on supply chains and complex commercial transactions. I've taught at the graduate school level and published several books on these topics.
My parents came to this country after World War II with nothing. They immigrated legally, became naturalized citizens by following the rules, and lived the American Dream. They taught me to love this country and the communities that make it work.
Why I'm Running
I'm running because I love this town and I want to protect it. Bernards has a special character. It's a great place to live and raise a family. That character didn't happen by accident. It was built over nearly a century of common-sense, fiscally conservative Republican leadership. If you moved here, or chose to stay here, you did so because of what that leadership created.
Last year, for the first time in almost 100 years, Democrats took control of the Township Committee. That concerns me. Not because of party labels, but because of a pattern you can see playing out across the State and in virtually every town Democrats run: they raise taxes, take on debt, and repeat the cycle. For a washing machine, it's wash, rinse, repeat. For the Democratic machine, it's tax, borrow, repeat.
I don't want that to happen here.
Running Together
Vanathi Raghupathy and I are running together on the Republican ticket. We were selected through a careful screening process conducted by the Bernards Township Republican Municipal Committee, which is made up of elected representatives from every voting district in town. That process is designed to identify the best-qualified and electable candidates for Township Committee.
I'm honored to be Vanathi's running mate. She brings exactly the qualities this town needs to stay successful, stay on track, and stay great. We share common-sense conservative values, and together we will keep Bernards the place you chose to call home. Learn more about us and where we stand: Paul Humbert’s website, Paul Humbert Facebook page, Vanathi Raghupathy’s Facebook page.
The State-Level Warning
New Jersey is in trouble. Democratic policies have produced structural deficits (which means they're permanent), the highest taxes in the country, and a business environment that's driving companies out. Law enforcement has been weakened by a cashless bail system that turns the criminal justice process into a revolving door: arrest, release, repeat. Housing mandates are forcing overdevelopment. School funding is being cut.
And then there's the debt. New Jersey's total stands at $209.5 billion. That works out to roughly $60,000 per household, and it's growing.
Don't let the Democrats do to Bernards what they've done to New Jersey.
Taxes Are Going Up
This year, the Bernards Township Committee approved a 3.44% tax increase. The Board of Education added a 4.98% increase on top of that. Rising health care costs explain part of it. But the deeper problem is years of fiscal mismanagement at the state level, which has put municipalities into a tax-and-debt spiral. These increases are just the beginning. With structural deficits baked into Trenton's budgets, many more are coming.
Let's stop rewarding fiscal irresponsibility.
Protecting Bernards from Overdevelopment
Part of the Democratic legislative agenda involves imposing more unfair housing mandates on towns like ours. They want to convert empty office space into affordable housing projects. These mandates run counter to our zoning laws and threaten our traffic flow, school capacity, municipal finances, and the historic character that defines Bernards.
We will fight to keep this town the place you chose when you moved here.
Standing with Law Enforcement
The county jail is essentially empty and closed because of how Democrats approach criminal justice. The cashless bail system allows offenders to cycle right back onto the streets. Ask anyone in law enforcement. Privately, they'll tell you: the system has become arrest, release, repeat. It's demoralizing for our officers, and criminals and their attorneys have learned how to game it.
We believe in community policing. We want our police to be a visible, supported part of daily life in Bernards. Every candidate for Township Committee should publicly commit to fully funding and staffing our police and first responders.
Why don't the Democratic candidates say so?
Standing for Legal Immigration
We will represent every family, like my parents, who came to this country legally, worked hard, paid taxes, and earned their citizenship by following the rules. My parents did it the right way. Shouldn't everyone?
We ask the Democratic candidates for Township Committee to state publicly that they will not declare Bernards a sanctuary city for individuals who have disrespected our laws and every immigrant who has followed the legal process.
The Choice
Don't let the Democrats do to Bernards what they've done to New Jersey. Don't let them do to Bernards what they've done to virtually every other town they run.