How You Are Represented

West Orange is part of the 10th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 27th state legislative district.

Prior to the 2010 Census, West Orange had been split between the 8th Congressional District and the 10th Congressional District, a change made by the New Jersey Redistricting Commission that took effect in January 2013, based on the results of the November 2012 general elections. In the redistricting that took effect in 2013, 18,122 residents in the eastern third of the township were placed in the 10th district, while 28,085 residents in the western portion of the township were placed in the 11th District.

For the 118th United States Congress, New Jersey's Tenth Congressional District is represented by Donald Payne Jr. (D, Newark). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 2027) and Bob Menendez (Harrison, term ends 2025).

For the 2022–2023 session, the 27th Legislative District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Richard Codey (D, Roseland) and in the General Assembly by Mila Jasey (D, South Orange) and John F. McKeon (D, West Orange).

Essex County is governed by a directly-elected County Executive, with legislative functions performed by the Board of County Commissioners. As of 2022, the County Executive is Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr. (D, Roseland), whose four-year term of office ends December 31, 2022. The county's Board of County Commissioners is comprised of nine members, five of whom are elected from districts and four of whom are elected on an at-large basis. They are elected for three-year concurrent terms and may be re-elected to successive terms at the annual election in November. Essex County's Commissioners are Commissioner President Wayne L. Richardson (D, District 2 – Irvington, Maplewood and parts of Newark's South and West Wards; Newark), Commissioner Vice President Carlos M. Pomares (D, District 5 – Belleville, Bloomfield, Glen Ridge, Montclair and Nutley; Bloomfield), Tyshammie L. Cooper (D, District 3 - Newark: Part of West Ward; East Orange, Orange and South Orange; East Orange), Brendan W. Gill (D, at large; Montclair), Romaine Graham (D, at large; Irvington), Rufus I. Johnson (D, at large; Newark), Leonard M. Luciano (D, District 4 – Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Millburn, North Caldwell, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell and West Orange; West Caldwell), Robert Mercado (D, District 1 – Newark's North and East Wards, parts of Central, South, and West Wards; Newark), Patricia Sebold (D, at-large; Livingston). Constitutional officers elected countywide are: County Clerk Christopher J. Durkin (West Caldwell; D, 2025), Register of Deeds Juan M. Rivera Jr. (Newark; D, 2025), Sheriff Armando B. Fontoura (Fairfield; D, 2024), and Surrogate Alturrick Kenney (D, 2023).