How to succeed in public service: Jersey City mayor shares experience with Binghamton students

Anika Choudhury thought a specific level of experience was required to enter politics, and if you didn’t have it, success would be unattainable.

That changed when the Binghamton University finance major heard how Steven Fulop drew upon his varied experiences serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and working at the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs when he decided to pursue a political career. He started as a city councilman in New Jersey, then became three-term mayor of Jersey City.

Choudhury, 17, said it was a welcome reminder that persistence counts.

“A lot of times when you hear about these politicians, you assume it’s a job that’s just out of your reach,” she said. “But even though he (Fulop) didn’t have much political experience beforehand, he still went for it. That’s really inspiring and reminds you that anyone could do it.”

Fulop, a 1999 Binghamton University alum who majored in political science, ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2004 but ousted an incumbent on Jersey City Council the following year. He’s served as Jersey City’s mayor since 2013.

On Oct. 13, Fulop discussed his perspectives on public service and the value it brings with 36 students in Public Administration Professor David Campbell’s Foundations in Civic Engagement course, as well as several students from an introduction to public service class.

Some of the students initially harbored negative impressions about politicians and used terms like corrupt, dishonest, self-interested and old to describe their general thoughts about elected officials. But the class session with Fulop challenged that view.

Speaking from the mayor’s office via Zoom, Fulop told students he always viewed public service as a “partial payment for citizenship” and it was the 9/11 terrorist attacks that motivated him to enlist in the Marine Corps. After serving in Iraq and returning to work in the private sector, he became interested in the prospect of running for public office.

The best way to succeed, Fulop said, is to have a genuine desire to affect change. It’s also important to recognize political positions aren’t supposed to be permanent jobs, he said, and fresh ideas are essential to the democratic process.

Getting involved in public service at the local level has certain advantages over elected positions at the state or national levels, he said.

“There is a direct involvement from residents in the community and the benefit of being in this role is that I can immediately see the impact of decisions,” Fulop said.

Examples of community impact he referenced included construction of high-rise development sites within a two-block area of Jersey City that had previously been considered eyesores, as well as a project that renovated a 3,000-seat theater built in 1929 into a new entertainment venue.

Fulop also said serving as mayor meant facing significant community tragedies, such as a shooting at a Jersey City kosher grocery store in December 2019 that killed five people, including the two assailants. The shooting was linked to antisemitism and Fulop, whose family members survived the Holocaust, was among the first public officials to call it a hate crime.

“Conversations like these with Binghamton alumni who have pursued public service careers are so important,” Campbell said, “because they lead students to question their assumptions about politicians or working in government. They also show students the personal and community-building rewards this kind of work can provide.”

Given a chance to speak to Fulop, students posed an array of questions: “How did you handle the hardest conversation you’ve ever had?” they asked, and “How do you maintain a tough skin despite criticism?”

“You rely on a good team that you assemble, and you have to get out of your comfort zone because being a little bit uncomfortable or uncertain about some things can make you better at the job. It means you’re not getting too complacent,” Fulop said. “I’m a firm believer in that you’re best prepared with multiple skill sets and know how to recognize opportunities whenever you’re presented with them.”