Mayor Ana Duarte McCarthy has lived in Bernards Township for 30 years and is serving a three-year term secured in the 2023 election. In seeking re-election, the mayor says, “The Township Committee is working together collaboratively, and in good faith, to provide all our residents with the best possible outcomes.
Regardless of the national divisiveness, here we are locals. I would be honored to continue serving our community for another term of office.”
ANA DUARTE McCARTHY
Duarte McCarthy is the township’s first-ever Democratic mayor and has had a broad range of responsibilities. She has served as liaison to the Agricultural Advisory, Emergency Management, and Golf Advisory Committees, the Municipal Alliance, and the Environmental and Shade Tree Commissions. She is also member of the Police Subcommittee, and lead with the utility companies.
As Mayor, she is focused on several priorities in partnership with her colleagues, including fiscal responsibility, public safety and economic development and being an inclusive community. She is the Township Committee lead on the 250th Anniversary Committee and is excited about the work underway to celebrate Bernards and its important role during the Revolutionary War.
Professionally, Duarte McCarthy was a senior executive with Citi for several decades and led the company’s global strategy for hiring and developing diverse talent, fostering an inclusive work environment, and ensuring management accountability. Afterward, she joined the Forte Foundation as the Director of Corporate Partners, responsible for new business development. Additionally, she has a long record of community service in local non-profits, Bernards schools, and township government. Since 2015, Duarte McCarthy has served on the Board of Directors of the Greater Somerset County YMCA, and is past chair, and current commissioner for the NJ State Advisory Commission on the Status of Women.
The Mayor and her husband, Michael, are currently empty nesters. Their daughter, Alissa, attended and graduated from Bernards Township public schools, and was recently married.
- Golf Advisory Committee; 2018 through present; Deputy Chair 2022, 2023
- Diversity and Inclusion Committee; 2021
- Democratic Municipal Committee, District 5 (2017 to present). Executive Board, Treasurer (2017-2022)
- Somerset Hills YMCA board of directors (2022 to present); Chair, Cultural Engagement Committee
- NJ Advisory Commission on the Status of Women, 2022 to present; elected Chair 2023
- Greater Somerset County YMCA Board of Directors (2015-2023, term limit reached)
- Past board service; Families and Work Institute; The PhD Project
- Past Volunteer in Bernards Township Schools; co-chair, Balloons in June Ridge High School Junior Class Fundraiser and Teacher Appreciation Luncheon; Parent Advisor, William Annin Middle School Ski Club; Class Parent, Oak Street School
- Past Volunteer in Bernards Township Parks and Recreation; Basketball Coach; grades 3-8
Professional Experience:
Ana Duarte McCarthy is currently Principal, Duarte McCarthy Diversity Consulting, LLC, a Human Resources Consulting Practice providing advisory consulting services on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategy, policy, and practices to Fortune 500 companies. Prior, Ana was Managing Director and Chief Diversity Officer of Citi, and then following 22 years at Citi, Senior Director, Corporate Partners for Forté Foundation. Ana also worked in the higher education sector supporting underrepresented communities at Passaic County College, and the New School for Social Research.
Committees Serving in 2026:
Agricultural Advisory Committee
Emergency Mgmt. Committee
Environmental Commission
Golf Advisory Committee
Municipal Alliance Committee
Patriotic Anniversary Committee
Police Sub-Committee
Shade Tree Committee
Education:
Ana holds a B.A. in Biology from Lafayette College and an M.Ed. in Counseling Psychology from Columbia University Teachers College. Passionate about education, Ana served as an adjunct faculty member at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, lecturing on Women in the Global Economy. She is also a featured “Ask the Expert” speaker within several Cornell University online certificate programs.
Former Township Committeewoman, Joan Bannan, has made our town her home for more than 25 years. She raised four children here, all of whom completed their education in our public schools.
She is a practicing attorney with expertise in civil litigation and experience in criminal law, having formerly been an Assistant Prosecutor in Morris County. Prior to her being elected in 2019, she served on the Board of Health (BOH) in 2015 and the Municipal Alliance (MA) in 2017. After her election, she continued her work on the BOH, was appointed Chair of the MA, and served on several other municipal boards and committees.
JOAN BANNAN
Working with her colleagues on the Committee and professional staff, some key accomplishments involved the entry into a shared services agreement with nearby towns for a municipal court resulting in taxpayer savings, the introduction of a new and improved Township website, the establishment of protocols and systems during the COVID pandemic to ensure the provision of municipal services, and significantly, continued fiscal responsibility keeping Bernards debt-free. Presently, Joan serves as a member of the Planning Board. Last but certainly not least, she thoroughly enjoys spending time with her family, which now includes three grandchildren.
Joan is a graduate of Seton Hall University (SHU) where she earned a BA in Economics. She also graduated from SHU School of Law where she earned her Juris Doctorate. She is admitted to the NJ Bar and a member of the NJ State Bar Association and the Trial Attorneys of NJ.
Professional Experience
Joan's experience includes civil litigation, at both the trial and appellate levels, criminal prosecution, and professional claims management. From 1992 to 2006, she was designated by the NJ Supreme Court as a Certified Civil Trial Attorney. As an assistant prosecutor in Morris County, she tried felony cases, presented before the Grand Jury, and assisted the Sex Crimes Unit.
Joan stepped back from from trial work for several years to spend more time with her children. She was employed by a national professional liability insurer where she collaborated with insureds and panel counsel to create and implement innovative strategies to secure favorable resolutions. She also negotiated multi-million-dollar settlements and monitored jury trials. After her youngest child went off to college, she resumed her legal career. Since 2019, Joan is counsel with the firm of Porzio, Bromberg & Newman, PC, where she continues to enjoy civil trial practice and a healthy dose of pro bono work.
Public Service
- Board of Health – 2015 - 2021
- Municipal Alliance – 2017 - 2021- lead efforts For Bernards Township to become a Stigma Free Town
- Sewerage Authority – 2019 - 2021
- DPW & Engineering Subcommittee – 2019 - 2021
- Environmental Commission – 2005 -2006; 2019 - 2021
- Green team – 2019 -2021
- Community Service – 2019
- Golf Advisory Committee – 2019
- Insurance Fund Committee – 2019 - 2020
- Planning Board – 2019 - 2020; 2026
- Liaison Friends of Kennedy-Martin-Steele Farmstead – 2019
- Parks, Pathways & Recreation – 2019
- Communications task Force – 2019
- Vision 2020/Planning for the Future task Force – 2019
- D&I Committee - 2021
Volunteerism
- Team Mom Ridge HS Girls Lacrosse Team - 2012
- Board Member Ridge HS Boys Lacrosse Team – 2016 - 2018
- Speaker at community and school events concerning adolescent substance use disorder – 2016 - 2018
- Formerly certified by the National Council for Behavioral Health as a Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor trained 100+ members of her community including local school districts' administrators and teachers
- Battered Women’s Legal Advocacy Project – Pro Bono Attorney – 2019 to present
- Homeless Solutions – team member preparing dinners – 2019 to present
