2026 Republican Candidates for Town Council
Election: November 3, 2026
Mark H. Forstenhausler is a three-time Mayor and has served Randolph since 1995, when he joined Millbrook Fire Company 2. Mark served as Battalion Chief from 1999 to 2000 and as Randolph Township Fire Department Chief in both 2005 and 2006. Mark served on the Board of Adjustment for three years and has also served on the Board of Engineers and is a Trustee of the Millbrook Fire Association. He is an Eagle Scout and a graduate of Montclair State University. He is also a parishioner of Resurrection Parish. Mark is recently retired as a Fire Protection Consultant from City Fire Equipment Company. A Randolph resident for 32 years, Mark and his wife Susan live in the Millbrook section of Randolph with their daughter.
Lou Nisivoccia served as Mayor in 2023 and Deputy Mayor in 2022. Lou is a past member of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, First Bank Advisory Board, and the Randolph Football Alumni Association. He is a past president of the Randolph Area Chamber of Commerce and The 200 Club of Morris County, a non-profit organization supporting the families of fallen police officers and firefighters. He also serves as a catechist at St. Matthew the Apostle Church. Lou is a graduate of Randolph schools and Cornell University and is the founder and managing director of Nisivoccia Consulting. Lou is a lifelong Randolph resident; he and his wife Jackie live in Ironia with their two children.
Denise Thornton has served on the Randolph Township Council since 2024. Denise serves as President of the Randolph Township Library Board of Trustees and as Vice President of the Ironia Fire Co. 4’s Ladies Auxiliary. Denise has also coached boys basketball and is a lector at St. Matthew the Apostle Church. A graduate of Norwich University, Denise is a Detective Captain with the Morris County Sheriff’s Office and has been involved with policy and procedure development and numerous community relation programs including Project Lifesaver, and the Hope One Advisory Board. She is a graduate and instructor of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Command and Leadership program and has commanded the Criminal Investigations Division which supports Morris County’s 39 municipalities. Denise and her husband, Scott have been Randolph residents for 18 years and live in Ironia with their two children and bulldog.
Travis Ruffo looks forward to continuing to serve our community on the Randolph Township Council. Travis currently serves on the Recreation Advisory Committee and has served on the Parks Committee and Wildlife Management Advisory Committee. He has actively coached football, wrestling, and baseball in Randolph for almost a decade. Professionally, Travis has been a law enforcement officer since 2002 and currently leads the Detective Bureau in North Caldwell. In addition to his law enforcement career, Travis owned and operated his own business from 2008 to 2020 and knows firsthand the challenges that small businesses face. Travis and his wife, Desi, have been Randolph residents for 11 years, attend Resurrection Parish, and live in Center Grove with their two sons and a dog. Together, the team has lived in Randolph for over 100 years combined and are dedicated volunteers, having served on nearly every township board and committee
