Mills Listens to Residents’ Talking Points, Cites Common Sense, Checks and Balances

Matthew Hersh

Esther Mills does a lot of talking, just ask the guests on her weekly talk show on Princeton Community Television, and you’ll find out how it’s gotten her involved politically.

When she arrived in Princeton five years ago, Ms. Mills said she was not nearly as loquacious, and in fact, never had a strong inclination for public office.

A lot can change in five years.

A Republican seeking a term on Princeton Township Committee, Ms. Mills, 36, found herself basically recruited to run for office, and did not think twice about it. “It’s interesting, I never thought of myself in my thirties running for office, but they asked me, I said yes, and here I am.”

A poll-worker in 2005, Ms. Mills was first approached by the Republican Association of Princeton in early 2007. She had become involved with the party after interviewing Tom Pyle, now a Republican organizer who had made an unsuccessful bid for Township Committee in 2005. However, it wasn’t until she attended a event hosted by the Princeton Taxpayers Association later that year that she thought government could be a way to effect a change.

“I was familiar with the political scene, and the party was reforming — it was a pretty exciting time.”

Ms. Mills, who has taken cues from Bob Martin, a Republican running for New Jersey’s 15th District state senate seat currently occupied by Democrat Shirley Turner, said she relishes her role as a candidate, particularly since she and her Republican mate in the Township, Cindy Randazzo, are both women.

“I think that there is often the idea that the Republican Party is represented by white men, but here you have two women, who I think, completely represent our party and where our constituency stands,” she said.

Since announcing her candidacy, Ms. Mills has cited a five-year increase in property taxes as a major campaign platform. “How many households can continue to sustain those kinds of increases? Not everybody who moves into Princeton are CEOs,” she said, putting a special emphasis on senior citizens and families with young children.

Ms. Mills pointed to the failed Princeton Regional Schools budget, saying that a change in the tax structure from the school’s standpoint could be examined and adding that the state could take on more of the burden. “When that budget failed, I think that was a major signal that Princeton residents are maxed out and cannot pay. It has come to a point where people are more alarmed by the checks they cut for property tax.”

Ms. Mills, a mental health counselor, also placed specific emphasis on women’s health and safety, and said that if elected, she would work to raise the level of awareness for women’s issues. “I think there are a lot of people who don’t know what to do if they are attacked or how to protect themselves,” she said, adding that at-risk youth would figure in another platform if she were elected.

“I have some clients who are considered at-risk and there’s a possibility that if their habits persist, their social problems will worsen in the future,” she said, adding that she would work with organizations like Corner House on Township Committee. Family counseling would also work into the equation. Employed by an Iselin-based firm, Mr. Mills works with clients from around the area.

Ms. Mills’ path to Prince-ton from northern Virginia originally followed that of her brother, who was studying at the Princeton Theological Seminary. But since arriving here: “I have never looked back.” She also talked about her marital status, single, as a demographic that is not represented on Committee.

As a relative greenhorn, Ms. Mills cited her initial confusion about the perceived conflict between the Borough and Township and said that she would continue to call upon the local government for new perspectives and opinions. “There’s a hunger among the electorate for a new perspective and new ways to handle the issues that we’re facing.

“As a Republican, I think can bring a little bit of common sense to Committee. There also need to be checks and balances — Committee says there are different opinions, but I’m not seeing it.”

Ms. Mills, who received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a master’s in Counseling from Liberty University, likened her arrival, and ultimate candidacy in Princeton, to her undergraduate career as a runner, working through injuries, eventually going on to hold 10 school records. “Like running track, running for office is a challenge, but if you want change, you have to work for it and vote for it.

“It’s not complicated.”

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