PARK RIDGE — School board trustee Robert Fisher said he would step down by 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19, after an appeals court upheld a Superior Court order placing his recall question back on the Nov. 4 ballot.
The announcement came that afternoon from Fisher’s attorney, Michael Collins, to Superior Court Judge Peter Geiger, and was shared online. Collins wrote, “This office represents Defendant Robert Fisher in the above-captioned matter. As this Court and the parties are aware, the Appellate Division issued an order on emergent motion yesterday in this matter. In response to same my client intends to resign his office as a member of the Park Ridge Board of Education by 5 p.m. this afternoon.”
Leaders of the recall effort, just recently raising more funds and predicting a more protracted fight, said Fisher’s decision marked a victory for residents who signed petitions to place the recall question before voters. Laura Clark said, “We’re very pleased that the courts (Superior and Appellate) decided with us and that Fisher decided to resign rather than be subject to a recall.”
Kelly Epstein, a former teacher of Fisher’s added, “At every level the courts are upholding the will of the people as this was about putting a question on the ballot for residents to decide.” She said almost 30% of local voters favored putting the question on the ballot.
Epstein was a panelist at the League of Women Voters of Northern Valley’s Constitution Day event in Westwood on Wednesday, Sept. 17. She and plaintiffs discussed the recall effort and raised funds to continue the fight, determined to meet the deadline to pass the recall question on to voters in the General Election.
Epstein said the signatories to the petition included Republicans, Democrats, and unaffiliated voters, underscoring that the recall drive was not a partisan crusade but rather a testament to the people’s right to seek redress through legal procedures. “As citizens, we are allowed to hold our elected officials accountable,” she said. “It’s not easy, but the process exists for a reason.”
The website of the Committee to Recall Robert Fisher had not been updated in the hours since Collins wrote to the judge. Among its most recent posts: “Together, we can make sure Park Ridge has a school board that truly represents the families who live here. Thank you for standing with us—and for believing in accountability, fairness, and common sense.”
Efforts to reach Fisher for comment were not immediately returned. In previous comments to Pascack Press, Fisher cast the recall effort as politically motivated and discriminatory. He also thanked state Sen. Holly Schepisi and Assemblyman John Azzariti for support.
The dispute began with recall petitions submitted by a local committee that contained 2,141 signatures from residents. Fisher challenged the petitions, charging that they had not been properly notarized. Committee members said the clerk’s office told them notarization was not required.
Initially, after Fisher’s attorney submitted his objections, the Bergen County Clerk’s Office upheld his challenge and rejected the petitions. However, Judge Geiger sided with the committee and ordered the recall question onto the ballot.
In the weeks that followed, Fisher’s attorney filed two appeals of Geiger’s order, both of which were denied. Over the last two weeks, Collins and an attorney for the recall committee argued in court as deadlines affecting the Nov. 4 election placed extra pressure on the courts to resolve the matter. On Sept. 18, the Appellate Division denied Fisher’s third appeal, prompting his attorney’s letter and announcement of resignation.
Officials said the school board would likely seek candidates to fill Fisher’s unexpired term, which ends Dec. 31, 2026, over the coming weeks.