HACKENSACK, N.J.—Anthony Nicodemo was sworn in Aug. 4 as Bergen County superintendent of elections, succeeding Debra Francica of the Township of Washington, who served in the role since 2021.
Nicodemo, who worked for six years in the county Department of Human Services, was nominated by Gov. Mikie Sherrill and confirmed by the state Senate.
“Anthony has distinguished himself through his professionalism, integrity, and unwavering commitment to serving Bergen County residents,” county spokesman Derek Sands told Pascack Press. “We are proud to celebrate this next chapter in his public service.”
County elections are administered through the superintendent of elections, County Clerk John Hogan’s office, and the Board of Elections, chaired by Richard Miller. The superintendent is responsible for enforcing election laws, investigating voting discrepancies, overseeing voter registration, and maintaining custody of poll books and voting machines.
Also sworn in was Deputy Superintendent Jamie H. Sheehan-Willis, who begins a second term. She joined the Bergen County Board of Elections in 2013 and became deputy superintendent in 2021.
Francica, a township resident with 32 years of public service, congratulated Nicodemo in a statement. “Serving Bergen County’s voters during this pivotal time of change has truly been my honor and one of the biggest joys of my life,” she told Pascack Press.
Francica was appointed Bergen County superintendent of elections in 2021, succeeding Patti DiCostanzo, who had served as superintendent for decades. Terry O’Connor, the longtime deputy superintendent, also retired that year. Francica served as chief of staff to then-state Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D-37).
Francica helped oversee major changes in county election administration, including the rollout of Bergen County’s first new voting machines in nearly three decades beginning in 2023, along with early in-person voting, electronic poll pads, and voter education efforts.
The new machines create paper voting records for election audits and are not connected to the internet, officials said.
The Bergen County Clerk’s Elections & Voting page offers links to election results and timelines, the unofficial 2026 general election candidate list, voter registration and polling-place information, vote-by-mail applications and ballot tracking, drop-box locations, candidate petitions, campaign-finance resources, poll-worker information, assistance for voters with disabilities, and other election-related forms and contacts.