Ocean County, NJ elected officials: county commissioners, sheriff, school board and cities

Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Ocean County: 41 seats on 37 elected bodies. 12 seats were on the November 3, 2026 ballot; they update once the county certifies its results.

Board of County Commissioners

Ocean County Board of County Commissioners

Every member is elected countywide.

OfficeWho holds it nowNext term
County CommissionerFrank Sadeghi Republican sourceOn the Nov 3, 2026 ballot: count not certified yet
County CommissionerJennifier Bacchione source
County CommissionerRobert S. Arace source
County CommissionerSam Ellenbogen source
County CommissionerRay Gormley source

County officers

OfficeWho holds it now
County ClerkVacant source
SheriffMichael G. Mastronardy source
SurrogateJeffrey W. Moran source

Cities and towns

How many local governments Ocean County has

The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 76 local governments in Ocean County. This page lists the ones whose offices are elected.

Kind of governmentCensus count (2022)Listed on this page
County government11
Cities, towns, villages and townships (19 municipal, 14 township)3333
School districts (school boards)270
Special districts (elected boards)150

Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments: Government Units Listing (census.gov).

About these counts

The Census Bureau counts every independent local government once, in the county it assigns it to: the one it mostly serves or where it's based. A city or district that crosses county lines is counted in only one county, so it may be listed on this page but counted elsewhere, or the other way around. Many special districts, such as housing authorities, have appointed boards, and some places have more than one elected body, so the two columns measure different things. School systems run by a county, city or the state aren't counted as separate governments (2 in Ocean County), though their boards may be listed here; in some states the Bureau counts community or state colleges as school districts. The counts are as of 2022.

Who lives in Ocean County

654,362people
41.2median ageU.S.: 38.9
$89,863 household incomeU.S.: $80,734
10.5%below the U.S.: 12.5%
34.4%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%
$398,400median home valueU.S.: $332,700
5.4%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%
8%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%
6.1%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%
4.1%U.S.: 8.4%
58.3%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%
34.3%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%

Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 10.9% · White 81.1% · Black 2.9% · Asian 1.9% · Other or more than one race 3.2% (Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race; the other groups are non-Hispanic.)

Census Bureau, 2020–2024 5-year estimates (data.census.gov).

About these figures

The American Community Survey asks about 3.5 million households a year about who lives there, their work, income, schooling and housing. The 5-year estimates pool 2020–2024 answers so that every county and district has enough of them. They're estimates with a (larger for smaller places), and they're different from the once-a-decade census count. "Median" means half are above and half below. Household income is before taxes and includes everyone in the household. The unemployment share here is the survey's five-year average, so it differs from the monthly rate in the BLS jobs report. Race and Hispanic origin are as people describe themselves.

Health insurance means any coverage, private or public (such as Medicaid or Medicare), when people answered; the share is of everyone except people on active military duty and people living in institutions such as prisons and nursing homes. The housing shares are of renting households, and of homeowners with a mortgage, for whom the Census Bureau can compute them (households with no income, or renters who pay no cash rent, are left out). Rent here is gross rent, rent plus utilities; owner costs include the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities and fees.

Jobs in Ocean County

4.0%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 5.6%. New Jersey: 4.1%.
11,689people unemployedSeptember 2026, preliminary.
280,170people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.
291,859in the September 2026, preliminary.
Unemployment rate, yearly average, Ocean County 0.0%2.5%5.0%7.6%10.1% 20162018202020222024

Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.

Every month, last two years
MonthRateUnemployedEmployedLabor force
September 2026 (preliminary)4.0%11,689280,170291,859
August 20264.6%13,452281,286294,738
July 20264.5%13,350281,563294,913
June 20264.3%12,734281,623294,357
May 20264.1%12,104279,937292,041
April 20264.0%11,701278,305290,006
March 20264.9%14,343276,181290,524
February 20265.7%16,590273,191289,781
January 20265.1%14,816274,313289,129
December 20254.6%13,399278,495291,894
November 20254.7%13,756278,768292,524
October 2025not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 20255.6%16,261274,009290,270
August 20255.6%16,539277,258293,797
July 20255.8%17,090278,797295,887
June 20255.3%15,496279,595295,091
May 20254.9%14,126276,206290,332
April 20254.8%14,063276,828290,891
March 20255.4%15,697274,382290,079
February 20255.7%16,492273,014289,506
January 20255.4%15,726272,999288,725
December 20244.5%12,980276,939289,919
November 20244.5%13,101276,443289,544
October 20244.3%12,476277,627290,103
Yearly averages
YearRateUnemployedEmployedLabor force
2025 (11 months)5.3%15,331276,396291,727
20244.7%13,546277,445290,991
20234.4%12,779278,722291,501
20224.1%11,728275,616287,344
20216.7%18,706262,071280,777
20209.6%26,364248,535274,899
20193.8%10,353263,100273,453
20184.3%11,621255,572267,193
20174.9%13,058252,531265,589
20165.4%14,337249,852264,189

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, : BLS publishes county figures only that way, so they rise and fall with the seasons; compare a month with the same month a year earlier rather than with the month before. New Jersey's figure above is on the same basis; seasonally adjusted, as in BLS's monthly state release, it was 4.2% in September 2026. The latest month is preliminary and is revised the next month, and BLS revises earlier years each spring. People are counted where they live. October 2025 wasn't collected during the 2025 federal government shutdown, so 2025's yearly average covers 11 months.

Crime reported in Ocean County

89.0 per 100,0002020. New Jersey: 195.4.
785.0 per 100,0002020. New Jersey: 1,158.2.
9murders2020, 543 violent crimes in all.

2020 is the latest year with complete reporting here: at least one of the county's police agencies didn't send the FBI a full year of figures since, so later totals would be undercounts.

Earlier years
YearViolentRatePropertyRate
202054389.04,788785.0
201955391.95,861973.6
201844474.95,904996.5
201747880.06,7451,128.9
201656796.47,0711,202.6
By police agency (32)
AgencyYearViolentPropertyPeople served
Lakewood Township Police Department2025186673143,902
Toms River Township Police Department2025125984101,100
Brick Township Police Department202512781777,471
Jackson Township Police Department20252617061,301
Manchester Township Police Department20254219446,585
Berkeley Township Police Department20256324245,629
Stafford Township Police Department20252520031,111
Lacey Township Police Department20252022430,417
Barnegat Township Police Department2025347626,304
Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department20241123122,244
Point Pleasant Police Department2025177619,745
Beachwood Police Department202586111,351
Ocean Township Police Department, Ocean County20252219,358
Plumsted Township Police Department20234328,782
Point Pleasant Beach Police Department202519944,993
South Toms River Police Department20254153,788
Tuckerton Police Department20230373,738
Long Beach Township Police Department20253343,162
Lakehurst Police Department202510392,737
Seaside Heights Police Department202525782,547
Pine Beach Police Department2023332,228
Ocean Gate Police Department20222302,000
Lavallette Police Department2025171,872
Island Heights Police Department2025131,734
Seaside Park Police Department20231131,496
Surf City Police Department20241111,333
Ship Bottom Police Department2025061,132
Beach Haven Police Department202501241,078
Bay Head Police Department2024011999
Barnegat Light Police Department202006588
Harvey Cedars Police Department202506405
Mantoloking Police Department202514343

Crimes to the county's city and county police agencies (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A), per 100,000 people they serve. Years with incomplete reporting are left out. Crime in New Jersey · the U.S.

Police staffing

1.90 per 1,000 residents2021, 32 agencies serving 644,164 people.
1,227sworn officers2021, full-time, as of October 31.
365civilian staff2021, full-time.

2021 is the latest year every agency here sent the FBI its staff count.

Agencies counted (32), 2021
AgencyOfficersCiviliansPeople served
Brick Township Police Department1456880,505
Toms River Township Police Department16146100,051
Lakewood Township Police Department14840113,868
Jackson Township Police Department1061861,350
Manchester Township Police Department705246,188
Berkeley Township Police Department772244,366
Stafford Township Police Department553030,025
Lacey Township Police Department441531,324
Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department451323,203
Barnegat Township Police Department53225,395
Long Beach Township Police Department36123,211
Point Pleasant Police Department32919,805
Ocean Township Police Department, Ocean County24109,659
Point Pleasant Beach Police Department2464,794
Seaside Heights Police Department2533,174
Beachwood Police Department19211,988
Lavallette Police Department1241,992
Plumsted Township Police Department1419,038
Ship Bottom Police Department1321,223
Beach Haven Police Department1311,275
Seaside Park Police Department1311,629
Tuckerton Police Department1313,586
Lakehurst Police Department1122,862
South Toms River Police Department1213,892
Ocean Gate Police Department1112,154
Surf City Police Department1101,262
Bay Head Police Department911,028
Mantoloking Police Department91258
Harvey Cedars Police Department90365
Island Heights Police Department701,773
Pine Beach Police Department612,307
Barnegat Light Police Department00614
Earlier years
YearOfficersPer 1,000CiviliansAgencies
20211,2271.9036532
20201,1921.9534932
20191,2062.0030032
20181,1741.9828932

Full-time employees of the county's city police departments and sheriff's office, as each reported them to the FBI (Uniform Crime Reporting, Law Enforcement Employees), per 1,000 people in the areas those agencies serve (the FBI's population figures). A year is shown only when every one of these agencies sent a count; a count under half or over double the agency's own counts in nearby years is treated as not sent. Towns policed under contract by another agency are counted through that agency. State police, campus and other agencies aren't included. Sheriffs' offices often also run the county jail and courthouse security, so their staff counts include those jobs.

Quick answers

Who is the Ocean County County Clerk?
The office of Ocean County County Clerk is vacant.
Who is the Ocean County Sheriff?
Michael G. Mastronardy is the Sheriff of Ocean County, New Jersey.
Who is the Ocean County Surrogate?
Jeffrey W. Moran is the Surrogate of Ocean County, New Jersey.
Who are the Ocean County commissioners?
Frank Sadeghi (County Commissioner); Jennifier Bacchione (County Commissioner); Robert S. Arace (County Commissioner); Sam Ellenbogen (County Commissioner); Ray Gormley (County Commissioner).
What is the population of Ocean County?
About 654,362 people, with a median age of 41.2; the median household income is $89,863 and 10.5% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Ocean County?
4.0% in September 2026 (preliminary): 11,689 people unemployed in a labor force of 291,859, against 5.6% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Ocean County?
76 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 19 municipal, 14 township, 27 school district and 15 special district governments.
What cities and towns are in Ocean County?
33: Barnegat, Barnegat Light, Bay Head, Beach Haven, Beachwood, Berkeley, Brick, Eagleswood, Harvey Cedars, Island Heights, Jackson, Lacey, Lakehurst, Lakewood, Lavallette, Little Egg Harbor, Long Beach, Manchester, Mantoloking, Ocean, Ocean Gate, Pine Beach, Plumsted, Point Pleasant, Point Pleasant Beach, Seaside Heights, Seaside Park, Ship Bottom, South Toms River, Stafford, Surf City, Toms River, Tuckerton. Each has its own page with its mayor and council.

Officeholders as of November 6, 2026, from the NJ Department of Community Affairs' Mayors Directory, the Division of Elections' list of county clerks, and each county's own website; where a county site blocks automated reading, from the county clerk's certified election results (officials appointed since an election may differ); each name links to its source. Officials change between elections (appointments, resignations), and the body's own website is the authority. Party is shown only for offices elected on a partisan ballot.

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