LAURA JAMESON/THE EXPRESS Flemington Borough Mayor Jo LaRocque is pictured at her seat inside council chambers. LaRocque is the first woman to serve as mayor of the borough.

FLEMINGTON — Jo LaRocque was pleased with the support she received from the Flemington Borough community when she chose to run for mayor in the 2025 General Election.

That support is what carried LaRocque into the role, and has marked her as the first woman to serve in that capacity for the borough beginning this year.

Prior to being elected, LaRocque had previously served on borough council for 10 years, losing her bid for re-election two years ago.

She told The Express she first became a council member because of her husband, Paul.

“My husband was a member of council. He got sick and planned to resign,” she said of the time.

When word got out of Paul’s intentions, LaRocque said members of council suggested she consider putting her name in for consideration to complete her husband’s final two years.

“Due to my husband’s illness, I was attending council meetings so I knew a bit about what was happening,” she explained.

Taking the suggestion, LaRocque put her name in for consideration and was appointed to complete the term. She would then go on to serve two, four-year terms before losing re-election in 2023.

She said, though it stung a bit to not be re-elected, the timing allowed her to help care for her sister who had fallen ill.

She spent a year assisting her sister — who she noted she was very close with following the passing of their husbands and parents in a short period of time years prior — with appointments and other care before she passed.

Left with very little to keep her occupied, LaRocque said she wasn’t quite sure what to do.

“I looked around and said ‘I need to do something,'” she said.

One day she was approached by someone who noted long-time mayor, Gary Durkin, was not planning to run for re-election in 2025. LaRocque said they told her she should consider running for the position.

LaRocque understood her role as mayor would be different from her time on council. She would serve on the borough’s variety of committees to offer her voice, and would only provide a vote at meetings as a tie breaker.

However, she said she felt she could still help enact change and support the residents of the borough in that capacity.

Running unopposed in the Primary Election in 2025, LaRocque, a registered Democrat, secured her name on both the Democrat and Republican ballots.

She said it was wonderful to see the support from both sides of the political aisle.

“I was very pleased by the community support,” she said.

LaRocque explained, even when she first became a member of council, she looked at the position less from a political stance and more from a community support one. That’s the same attitude she has with her new role as mayor.

“I’m here because I like Flemington. It’s a great place to live. The people are so nice. I’m here to help make the community even better,” she said.

Now that she’s beginning to settle into her role, LaRocque said there are a few key items she’d like to see accomplished during her time as mayor.

Beyond just ideas she hopes to present to committees for consideration, one goal is to see the start, and possible completion, of an anticipated new senior living facility next to Susquehannock Heights near the borough’s border with Lock Haven.

“Hopefully I’ll at least maybe shovel a bit of dirt (at a groundbreaking) before construction starts,” she said.

She’s also looking forward to Flemington’s participation in celebrating America’s 250th Birthday this year.

“We have a committee. We’re meeting before a council meeting so hopefully we’ll have ideas to present,” she said.

In terms of community development, LaRocque said the committee’s attention is on trying to urge various property owners within the borough to complete improvements and upkeep.

“For the most part, Flemington is a clean and tidy place. But there are some properties that need cleaned up,” she said.

The borough is also in the planning stages of upgrading Grove Community Park.

LaRocque said council submitted a grant application, and while they wait to hear word on whether they received funds or not, it’s been surveying the community for ideas.

“We’ve gotten a lot of ideas. People have been so helpful, but we’re looking for even more,” she said.

As for her historic election in the borough’s history, LaRocque said she hadn’t even considered she might be the first woman elected to the position until after the primary.

“It wasn’t until after the primary that someone mentioned to me that I would be the first woman to do it,” she said.

LaRocque is the third woman county-wide to serve as mayor of a Clinton County Municipality.

The first was DiAnn Stuempfle, who was elected to serve as Lock Haven’s mayor from 1984 to 1991.

More recently, Loganton Borough saw its first woman serving as mayor for a short period.

According to Clinton County Voter Registrar Maria Boileau, Ashleigh Shadle was appointed to the position, but resigned this year.

LaRocque encourages other women to consider taking an active role in their community, whether as a supervisor, on council or volunteering for a variety of committees.

“Don’t be afraid of doing something new. As I’ve aged I’ve developed the ‘don’t be afraid to be yourself’ ideology. Take a chance. Try it,” she said. “You can do it. If you have an interest in it, you can do it.”

This includes simply attending municipal meetings when able and listening and learning.

She noted the suggestion isn’t limited just to women, men should also consider becoming active in their community and local government.

“We need women, and men also,” she said.

She noted the majority of borough council is composed of retirees, though all are active in the community in a variety of ways.

“It’s a great group of people to work with,” she said.

However, those individuals may one day decide to step back, and new members will need to be elected.

“We need to be looking for new people interested in serving. It would be so nice if people came to our meetings,” she said, noting borough council meets the second and fourth Thursday of each month at 7 p.m.

“See what it’s all about,” she encouraged.