Elsie Foster

Elsie Foster-Dublin (born 1961 or 1962) is a Jamaican-born American politician serving as Mayor of Highland Park, New Jersey since 2023.

Early life and education

Foster was born in Kingston, Jamaica. She migrated from Trelawny, Jamaica, to Newark, New Jersey, while in her teens in the 1970s. Her neighborhood in Newark suffered from crime, division, and racism. When President Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976 and took office peacefully, she was relieved to avoid the chaotic, often violent political transitions she knew in Jamaica. The positivity of that process made her "fall in love with the idea of America". She attended Essex College of Business in Newark and went on to earn her MBA in Global Management.

Career

Foster was a founding partner at a consulting firm and chaired a nonprofit for international student housing.

Politics

After her activism opposing a developer who moved to fence off neighborhoods in Highland Park, Foster was recruited to the borough's planning board. She joined the council's Democratic Committee in 2000. In 2004, she received the Adam Clayton Powell Political Action Award from the NAACP for her contributions to politics. She served as public safety chair and then borough council president. Foster directed consumer affairs for Middlesex County. In January 2023, the borough council elected her mayor to fill the seat vacated the prior month. In 2023, she campaigned to continue serving as mayor and won the November election by a large margin.

Foster was commended for her efforts to maintain cohesiveness in her community following the October 7 attacks and for her diplomacy in navigating controversy over Pride flags in front of Orthodox synagogues.

Other activities

Foster founded the United Caribbean American Network of New Jersey, where she also served as president. She has been a member of the Association of Caribbean American Elected Officials and Leaders, the Edison and Metuchen Rotary International, and the Caribbean Medical Mission.

Personal life

Foster mentioned her religious faith as a source of balance.