New Jersey council meetings, town by town

Kenilworth, NJ

• October 21, 2026. The costume takeover: after Kenilworth officials introduced an ordinance to ban costumes at meetings, residents showed up as the Devil, the Terminator and a mock mayor to deliver public comment on the $1.8 billion AI data center. Watch the meeting tape
• October 7, 2026. The mayor and council walked out and adjourned the meeting in the middle of public comment on the AI data center — again — which residents argue violates the Open Public Meetings Act. Watch the meeting tape
• August 19, 2026. Livestreamed from Kenilworth, where the $1.8 billion AI data center approved in 2025 is still being fought. Watch the meeting tape
• July 1, 2026. The mayor and council ended the meeting early in the middle of public comment on the $1.8 billion AI data center. Residents carried on outside the building. Watch the meeting tape
• June 17, 2026. Residents packed the borough council chamber over the AI data center and the council declined to hear them out. One resident took the floor with "The People’s Gavel." Watch the meeting tape

More on Kenilworth, NJ: the meetings, the coverage and the background

Cranford, NJ

• October 20, 2026. Bongholeo returned to the Cranford Township Committee and used his five minutes of public comment to perform a mock Doritos sponsorship ad. Watch the meeting tape
• October 14, 2026. Turned away at the door of the municipal building while trying to film a candidates’ debate that officials called a private event, even though it featured a sitting committee member and was held in the public meeting space. Watch the meeting tape
• October 6, 2026. Will Thilly’s first return to the Cranford podium since his July 7 arrest, recorded in full. Watch the meeting tape
• September 15, 2026. Removed from the building by police, on the mayor’s order, for joining a chant led by disability activist Edward "Lefty" Grimes during his public comment on ADA access. Watch the meeting tape
• September 1, 2026. Removed from the chamber by Cranford police before the meeting was called to order, after declining the mayor’s request to sit down while filming. The Westfield Leader reported the removal and named him. Watch the meeting tape
• August 18, 2026. The first return after going viral. The mayor had the cameras moved before the meeting began; near the end of his public comment, fog poured from the costume, the committee called a recess and the fire department was summoned. News 12 and Hoodline covered it; he was later charged with disorderly conduct and disturbing a public gathering, charges he is contesting (NJ.com, Aug 27). Watch the meeting tape
• July 7, 2026. The Cranford Township Committee meeting that went national: public comment delivered in the purple costume, as a parody of Lizzo’s "About Damn Time." Covered by TMZ, USA Today, Stereogum, News 12 New Jersey and NJ 101.5. Watch the meeting tape

The full account of the July 7, 2026 Cranford meeting

Garwood, NJ

• October 8, 2026. First visit to Garwood: a tightly controlled council meeting where the mayor and council declined to answer questions, and where Cranford’s Will Thilly laid out how 30-year developer tax exemptions shift the burden onto residents. Watch the meeting tape

Jackson, NJ

• September 22, 2026. A schoolteacher told the council that a performer hired for the township’s Halloween event was a registered Tier 1 offender; the mayor answered on Facebook the next day. The most-watched tape of the fall. Watch the meeting tape
• July 28, 2026. First time in Jackson: a song performance aimed at Mayor Jennifer Kuhn in front of a packed council chamber. The most-watched tape of the summer. Watch the meeting tape

More on Jackson, NJ: the meetings, the coverage and the background

Summit, NJ

• September 22, 2026. Recorded a council session that ended with a councilman losing his temper at opposing-party members and residents after national politics entered the local discussion. Watch the meeting tape

Franklin Township, NJ (Somerset County)

• September 22, 2026. Back in Franklin to follow up on the Flock camera contract and to ask the council to stop requiring a name and address before residents can speak — delivered as a music video. Watch the meeting tape
• August 11, 2026. Public comment against the township’s Flock Safety automated licence-plate-reader expansion, cut short when the mayor demanded personal details before he could continue. NJ.com and New Jersey 101.5 both covered the meeting and named him. Watch the meeting tape

More on Franklin Township, NJ: the meetings, the coverage and the background

Parsippany, NJ

• August 4, 2026. Recorded a police officer pacing outside the doorway while two women testified about government retaliation — and only during their testimony. Watch the meeting tape

Roselle Park, NJ

• July 16, 2026. Recorded the borough council meeting where a councilman was questioned by a resident over how his organisation had been described publicly. Watch the meeting tape
• June 18, 2026. Back at the borough council to question a councilwoman about a public post — and to document the borough attorney shutting down the back-and-forth that public comment used to allow. Watch the meeting tape

Edison, NJ

• October 9, 2024. The costume’s first press-covered appearance: a giant bong cradling a baby doll in a matching costume told the Edison council it had "failed miserably." Six weeks later Edison cut public comment to four minutes and banned props at the podium — NJ 101.5 named "Bongholeo and El Rampador" in its report on the new rules.