The governing body consists of a Mayor and a Borough Council, with all positions elected at-large on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. A Mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The Borough Council has six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year in a three-year cycle. The Borough form of government used in Emerson is a "weak mayor / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can veto ordinances subject to an override by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and most appointments are made by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council.  , the Mayor of Emerson Borough is Republican Danielle DiPaola, whose term of office ends December 31, 2022. Members of the Emerson Borough Council are Council President Kenneth Hoffman (R, 2021), Nicole Argenzia (R, 2022), James Bayley (D, 2020), Patricia L. Dinallo (D, 2020; appoimted to serve an unexpired term), Brian Gordon (R, 2021) and Jill McGuire (R, 2022). In January 2020, the Borough Council selected Patricia L. Dinallo to fill the seat expiring in December 2020 that had been held by Christopher Knoller until he resigned from office late in 2019; with Dinallo taking office and Nicole Argenzia and Jill McGuire sworn in to full terms, Emerson's governing body had a female majority for the first time since the borough was established. In January 2019, the Borough Council selected Jill McGuire from three candidates nominated by the Republican municipal committee to fill the seat expiring in December 2019 that was vacated by Danielle DiPaola when she took office as the borough's first female mayor. Day-to-day operation of the Borough is handled by Richard J. Sheola, who serves as Interim Borough Administrator. The Borough Clerk is Jane S. Dietsche and the CFO is Catherine Henderson. Emerson is located in the 5th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 39th state legislative district. As of March 23, 2011, there were a total of 4,690 registered voters in Emerson, of which 905 (19.3% vs. 31.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 2,025 (43.2% vs. 21.1%) were registered as Republicans and 1,759 (37.5% vs. 47.1%) were registered as Unaffiliated.