Victoria Napolitano (born Victoria Lynne Spellman; August 16, 1988) is an American Republican politician who served as a Councilwoman of Moorestown, New Jersey. She began her term on the Moorestown Township Council on January 7, 2013. She made history in 2015 by becoming Moorestown's youngest Mayor ever at the age of 26, and is the youngest female to ever hold the office of Mayor statewide. In 2016, she served as the township's Deputy Mayor. She retired from the township's town council in 2021, citing the want to "explore new ventures, and, more importantly, to make room for new individuals to bring their fresh ideas to the council."
Personal life Napolitano grew up in Cranford, New Jersey and is a graduate of Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch Plains, New Jersey. She then went on to Drexel University, where she earned a bachelors' in education and minor in English, and a masters' in teaching, learning, and curriculum in just over four years. Napolitano is currently an Instructional Designer and Trainer with Clarivate Analytics in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Napolitano has been active in numerous civic organizations and activities, including MoorArts performing arts group, Historical Society of Moorestown, the Lenola Advisory Committee, the National Federation for Women Legislators, Save the Environment of Moorestown (STEM), the Moorestown Improvement Association, Friends of the Moorestown Library, the Burlington County Young Republicans, and Our Lady of Good Counsel Church.
She married her high school sweetheart, Vinny Napolitano, who she met in 2003 when they were both in a production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. The pair moved to the Lenola section of Moorestown in 2010 and currently reside in West Moorestown.
During her 2016 re-election campaign, Napolitano announced that she and her husband were expecting their first child, making Napolitano the first member of the Moorestown Council to give birth while in office. Her daughter, Elliot Eliza Napolitano, was born on March 26, 2017.
In March 2019, Napolitano and her husband welcomed their second child, daughter Reagan Noelle Napolitano. Napolitano gained attention for what she refers to as "motherhood in public," bringing her daughter with her to Township meetings and events. She stated that she hopes "that serves as an example that young women can step up to take leadership positions and be involved in things like this, and they don’t have to do it before or after their child-bearing years [...] There’s no reason why we should have to sit that out.”
Township Council Election, 2012 In 2012, a pool of "16 to 18" candidates were screened to run for Township Council by the Moorestown Republican Municipal Committee (MRMC). The committee opted against endorsing then-Mayor John Button for re-election, citing differences of opinion as well as his inability to work with Councilwoman Stacey Jordan and Councilman Chris Chiacchio. Instead, the Republican Party chose to run Victoria Napolitano along with Recreation Advisory Committee Chair Phil Garwood and Pete Palko, the CEO of an environmental remediation company. Button's 2008 running mates, Deputy Mayor Greg Gallo and Councilman Mike Testa, did not seek a second term.
Two weeks later, the Moorestown Democratic Committee endorsed Democrats J. Greg Newcomer, Brian Sattinger and Mark Hines as their 2012 Council candidates. Both Sattinger and Hines were second-time candidates for Township Council, having lost races in 2010 and 2008, respectively.
In May 2012, Mayor John Button announced that though he was not selected to run as a Republican, he would be seeking reelection as part of an Independent slate of candidates that included developer Randy Cherkas and businesswoman Elaine Goralski. However, their team withdrew from the race in early September, putting the election back to a two-slate race.
During the campaign, Napolitano knocked on over 5,000 doors and ran on a message centered around bringing attention to the Lenola section of Moorestown, preserving the Open Space Trust Fund, and completing the rebuild of the Town Hall Complex, which had burned down in a 2007 fire.
On election day, Napolitano was the top vote-getter with 5,580 votes, outpacing her Republican running mates as well as her Democratic opponents.November 6, 2012 Summary Results , Burlington County.
Township Council Napolitano was sworn in as a Councilwoman on January 7, 2013, by Congressman Jon Runyan. Napolitano's swearing-in marked the first time in the township's history that two women served together on the Township Council, and on the same night, the council made history by electing Stacey Jordan as Moorestown's first female Mayor.
During her first two years on the Township Council, Napolitano spearheaded the creation of the Lenola Advisory Commission to address the problems facing the western portion of Moorestown.
Napolitano, along with her Council colleagues, increased communication between the Township Council and residents in Moorestown by bringing back "Residents Requests and Presentations" to Council meetings - an item eliminated in 2011 - and by holding office hours for members of the public who could not attend regularly scheduled Council meetings
In May 2014, the Moorestown Town Council opened the doors to the new Town Hall and Library Complex under the originally allocated budget. Napolitano and her colleagues praised the opening of the building, which fulfilled a campaign promise of Napolitano and her running mate, Phil Garwood. Eight months later, Napolitano would be the first person to take the oath of office as Mayor in the new Town Hall building.
At Napolitano's urging, Mayor Stacey Jordan proclaimed April as Autism Awareness Month for the first time in town history. Napolitano serves as an Autism Ambassador for Autism New Jersey.
Mayor Napolitano was sworn in as Moorestown's youngest Mayor on January 7, 2015, by Judge Lois F. Downey. Though no records were kept to confirm, Napolitano may also be the youngest woman to ever be sworn in as Mayor statewide in New Jersey.
Napolitano stated that her priority as Mayor will be to work on keeping taxes low and building a stronger business climate in Moorestown Of her age, Napolitano stated, "Credibility isn't a gift handed out on your 30th or 40th birthday [...] It's something you can earn at any age. An articulate, respectfully delivered opinion should be welcome from anyone."
In April 2015, Napolitano led the Township Council in passing ordinances that would protect municipal open space land from encroachments and to crack down on vacant or abandoned homes and properties.
Mayor Napolitano cast the lone dissenting vote on Moorestown's 2015 municipal budget, opposing the budget's proposed tax increase. Napolitano stated that she would rather use a portion of the township's $7 million surplus to allow taxes to stay flat for residents.
Napolitano celebrated the opening of two new volleyball courts at Jeff Young Park in the Lenola section of Moorestown in July 2015. The courts were created in a partnership between the Township Council and the non-profit organization Kennedy's Cause.
Under Napolitano, Moorestown has moved to clean-up Strawbridge Lake watershed, spending $80,000 to test water quality, remove invasive vegetation such as spatterdock, and develop an ongoing management plan for the lake. Napolitano stated, "The lake has been described as the jewel in the crown of Moorestown [...] It's worth the investment.". Additionally, Napolitano moved to have the Township Council designate the Sustainable Moorestown Green Team as a permanent advisory committee within the township, calling the group "a valuable asset to the community" and protecting the group from potential disbandment by future elected officials.
Napolitano declared August 2015 as Agriculture Appreciation Month in Moorestown and spent time visiting with local farms and agribusinesses to draw attention to Moorestown's various agricultural assets. She was joined in this effort by Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno and Secretary of Agriculture Doug Fisher.
Mayor Napolitano started the process of building a dog park in Moorestown along with the Burlington County Freeholders. The park was completed in Fall 2017 at Swedes Run and incorporated historical markers for Swedes Run Barn, a picnic pavilion, and improved parking facilities.
In September 2015, Napolitano joined members of Save the Environment of Moorestown (STEM) to secure placement and installation of a historical marker on Stokes Hill, a favorite sledding spot in Moorestown. The marker tells the story of the "saving of Stokes Hill" by local artist and activist Carol Mastran, who led townspeople against the development of the plot of land in the early 1990s. At the ceremonial unveiling, Napolitano said, "Carol Mastran's work to preserve Stokes Hill is an important part of our town's history. I hope that every child who visits Stokes Hill learns something from this historic marker."
In the aftermath of the 2015 fire of The Moorestown Community House, Mayor Napolitano honored first responders and others who helped save the historic building by issuing each individual a Mayoral proclamation. Napolitano and the Township Council also moved to cancel the annual Moorestown Boards and Committees Dinner, opting instead to donate the funds allocated for that event to The Moorestown Community House's restoration efforts.
Deputy Mayor and Re-Election Campaign In keeping with recent tradition, Napolitano stepped down as Mayor after serving one year in order to allow another member of the Township Council to serve. She nominated her Deputy Mayor, Phil Garwood, to be her successor, and the motion carried in a 4-0-1 vote, with the lone Democrat on the council abstaining. Councilwoman Stacey Jordan nominated Napolitano to serve as Deputy Mayor for 2016, and the motion carried by the same 4-0-1 vote.
Deputy Mayor Napolitano joined her colleagues in passing a tax cut for the residents of Moorestown in the 2016 municipal budget, praising the move as a real commitment to tax relief.
In March 2016, Napolitano announced she would be seeking re-election along with Mayor Phil Garwood and newcomer Mike Locatell. The candidates ran on a platform of lower taxes, business development, updating Moorestown's aging infrastructure and water facilities, protecting open space, and increasing transparency. Democratic incumbent Lisa Petriello ran with newcomers Kati Angelini and Amy Leis against the Republican slate. On Election Day, Napolitano was re-elected to a second term along with running mate Locatell and opponent Petriello, delivering a continued 4-1 Republican majority in spite of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton winning the town 56%-40% against Republican Donald Trumphttp://www.moorestown.nj.us/documentcenter/view/1443
Moody's Investors Service issued a report in October 2016 stating that Moorestown Township was "financially healthy," with their report saying the township is doing well thanks to "strong financial management" and that the "economy and tax base of the Township are healthy overall." Napolitano praised the news, stating that the Township Council was able to invest in infrastructure and water improvements, protecting our open spaces, upgrading our various athletic facilities, and increasing business ratables while still delivering a tax decrease.
Napolitano led the charge on Township Council to continue investment into the Lenola Town Center portion of the municipality, announcing in the Fall of 2016 that the Township would be applying for millions of dollars in grant funding from the federal government to deliver streetscaping improvements, plant new trees, install new curbing and crosswalks, and more.