Mahesh Bhagia

Bio

I started as a community activist and grassroots organizer, and eventually worked in town hall advocating on behalf of constituents and making government services more easily accessible to our residents. I am now focused on building a strong, vibrant, and diverse local Democratic Party as EDO Chairman. Professionally, I was integral to the growth of an innovative financial technology leader that is now part of Fortune 500 and S&P 500. Today, I am a small business owner who understands the challenges faced by residents in the current climate, because I have to navigate those same challenges myself. With your support, I hope to combine my activism, advocacy, technology, and small business experience and offer a pragmatic vision on how together we can move Edison forward.

Professional Experience

Hotel Construction & Operations Management, oversee multi-million dollar budget, management of employees, delivering projects on time, on schedule, and within budget

In-charge of improving safety and efficiency of the project

Create well-paying local jobs, help revitalize neighborhoods

Built business from ground-up

Research & Product Development

Created Operating Budgets, Managed Complex Projects, Customer Communications

Establish and supervise a quality assurance process, including integration and system testing.

Select, deploy, and monitor performance profiling tools and procedures.

Devise and communicate tech strategy to management, partners, clients, and stakeholders.

As senior management team, established governance processes to achieve objectives, manage risks, and efficiently and responsibly deploy organizational resources

Specialize in J2EE Architecture Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications

Political and Government Experience

Focused on strengthening local Democratic Party, including by supporting Democratic candidates for national, state, and county elected offices

Grew and increased engagement in the Democratic party by forming caucuses including the Veterans Caucus, Women’s Caucus, Small Business Caucus, and Progressive Caucus

Transformed the EDO into a community partner by helping to organize food pantries, delivering PPE to first responders, supporting local small businesses, organizing holiday events, and voicing policy concerns of residents

Started initiative to promote local small businesses affected by recession and pandemic

Strong advocate for fiscal responsibility and property tax fairness

Constituent Services - worked closely with residents and small businesses in need of assistance to make town hall and government services more easily accessible and effective

Coordinated with Public works, Police, Fire, Buildings & Health Departments to solve day to day issues for residents

Proposed policy changes and recommended legislation to streamline township services, increase efficiency, and promote fairness & equity, based on feedback from constituents

Promoted community development through advisory committees, and local public services

Conducted public outreach, and organized meetings and other public forums with community leaders, groups, and residents to understand and address neighborhood issues and community needs

Advocated for a responsible Budget

Analyzed Township Expenses, Forecasting, Approximations, Reviewing bids & Revenues

Community Service

Created community food bank and engaged in PPE distribution in response to COVID-19.

Organize annual clothing drive to benefit Middlesex county residents.

2017 Lions Club Award recipient

Leadership positions in multiple community and professional organizations

Organized town hall meetings for Edison residents to address infrastructure and other issues, including public safety meetings with Edison Police, neighborhood meetings regarding road repair and quality of life issues

Education

Masters in Computer Science, Pace University

Bachelors of Science in Electronics Engineering, Pune University

Family

Proud husband and father, and longtime resident of Edison Township

Wife is a practicing dentist in Edison, 2 daughters attending Edison Public Schools