Meet Douglas Herring

I have spent most of my career in courtrooms, and I have spent most of my life learning that a community is only as strong as the people willing to show up for it.

I started out as a prosecutor in Los Angeles County, trying gang homicide cases in Compton in 2007. It was some of the hardest and most serious work I have ever done, and it taught me early on what it means to fight for people who are counting on the system to work. From there I served as a federal Assistant U.S. Attorney before eventually opening my own practice, Herring Defense, where I now represent people across Mercer, Somerset, and Middlesex counties.

When I first arrived in Montgomery, the change was almost hard to believe. I went from prosecuting gang violence in Compton to a town where cows graze at the end of my street and George Washington once marched the Continental Army across the very ground I now call home. What I found here was not just quiet and open space, but a real community, made up of people from every corner of the earth who chose to build something together.

I am raising my family here. My daughter is in high school now, and like so many parents in Montgomery, I want her growing up in a town that is safe, well run, and full of opportunity. That is a big part of what pulled me into public service. I did not get into this because I was unhappy with my life. I got into it because I care about this community and I believe I can help it run better.

Outside the courtroom, you will usually find me volunteering with Montgomery EMS, cheering on local kids at Central Jersey Flag Football or Montgomery High School games, or behind a camera capturing those moments for families to keep. I like being useful. I like being present. That is the kind of leader I try to be on the Township Committee too, someone who shows up, listens carefully, and does the work rather than just talking about it.

My time as a prosecutor taught me that people deserve to have things explained to them clearly and honestly, not buried in jargon or repeated back to them once and forgotten. I bring that same approach to local government. Whether we are talking about our tax base, our aging infrastructure, or how the township communicates with residents, I believe people are entitled to straight answers and real accountability.

I am asking for your support because I love this town, I am raising my family here, and I want to keep doing the work that keeps Montgomery strong for the next generation.