Full TAPintoBloomfield Responses: Meet Stefanie Santiago - A Candidate for First Ward Council Seat

Stefanie Santiago

Stefanie Santiago - Candidate for First Ward Seat on Bloomfield Town Council. Photo Credit: Tracy Toler-Phillips

A week ago, Bloomfield Democrats for Change were invited by a TAPintoBloomfield journalist to respond to four questions. Now that the article has been published, we’re sharing our full responses here for readers interested in learning more about our team. Below are the questions and the asnwers we supplied, without any edits.

TAPintoBloomfield Interview - Stefanie Santiago

Why are you running for these positions?

I have decided to run for office because I believe we need a more responsive council who can independently represent residents and critically evaluate proposals to the township. We deserve a council who understands the responsibilities of their role and how it could contribute to the issues that negatively affect us as a community if not executed effectively. I have grown frustrated seeing our town become exploited by third party stakeholders and personally dealt with deceptive practices by municipal staff over a sidewalk issue that has been covered up by some council members and their lawyer. I am not confident in the current leadership’s ability to govern with integrity or to resolve ongoing problems based on their performance interacting with rightfully concerned residents and I understand that a major source of that outcome is the path to council positions set forth by our obscure local Democratic Party. I run and hope to win so that community members have a reference of a regular concerned resident choosing to independently run their own campaign from the ground up successfully with nothing but good ideas without needing to compromise oneself to the will of the political machine.

Will this be your first introduction to the Bloomfield Township Council?

This is my first time ever running for public office, a gesture I have not taken lightly considering the nature of my work requires me to be private. I have attended numerous town hall meetings and have spoken out on behalf of myself and others in the past so in that essence I know I am no stranger to the council.

What are some challenges you face running against an incumbent mayor and her running mates?

I think this question needs a revision. My running mates and I are not running against an incumbent mayor. We’re running for seats on the council currently filled by the mayor’s chosen group of rubber stampers, some of whom were not elected but appointed by the local party establishment. Our intention is not to go against our mayor, per se, as long as she is leading in good faith with vision and transparency instead of weakening the voices of constituents as a way to reduce valid criticism.

The unique challenges I’d say we are facing are working with limited resources to help make a name for ourselves as new public figures, going against members who are going the extra mile in their performance given its an election year, and having to rely on an election system that has historically manipulated uneducated voters. Thanks to Andy Kim, some of that has been challenged with the ballot design as of last year, but it has not completely prevented political institutions from influencing voter’s choices. As an example, Bloomfield’s local party, which is headed by our former mayor, has endorsed our current mayor and her team for a primary election, meaning they are placing all of their resources behind their preferred candidates instead of allowing voters to make that determination for the party. This leads to wealth inequities among partisan political campaigns within a party that’s supposed to be all about DEI. So many people don’t understand the pathways available to running for office so when they hear we are democrats, they are either ecstatic or angry because of the reputation previous democrats have established.

What do you bring to these positions that others might not?

As a group, I know we bring integrity, ethics, an understanding of powers of a township council that will not be underutilized, and an actual individual platform for each of our candidates that shows how we’re dedicating our time in the seats we’re seeking. Personally, I bring with me a professional history of helping others find their voice and an unwillingness to settle for subpar services for our community.