He was born in Harrison on November 15, 1909, to Michael Rodgers and Johanna Davin, and attended
St. Benedict's Preparatory School in
Newark. Rodgers ran for the Harrison Town Council for the first time in 1935, and served there for ten years, including a term when he was re-elected to the office while serving 27 months in the
United States Army during
World War II in the
Counterintelligence Corps. Rodgers defeated incumbent
Frederick J. Gassert in his first bid for the mayoralty, a candidate backed by
Jersey City Mayor
Frank Hague's
Hudson County Democratic Party machine. Over his years in office, Rodgers had served as Town Clerk, as County Clerk, as a member of the Hudson County
Board of Chosen Freeholders and as the Board's clerk. He served two terms in the
New Jersey Senate, from 1978 to 1984, defeating Independent incumbent
Anthony Imperiale. Rodgers served on numerous state authorities and commissions, including being appointed secretary of the New Jersey Racing Commission by
Governor Richard J. Hughes in 1963, to the
New Jersey Highway Authority in 1976 by Governor
Brendan Byrne, and to the
New Jersey Turnpike Authority by Republican Governor
Thomas Kean in 1984. Rodgers won his final election campaign in November 1992 by a narrow 111 vote margin out of 3,600 votes cast, in this heavily-Democratic community, having been unable to campaign due to a chronic knee injury. Rodgers cited the injury and his desire to allow a younger generation to serve in office as his justification for declining to run for a 25th term in office. He was succeeded by Raymond J. McDonough. He maintained his position as chairman of the Harrison Democratic Committee after leaving office in 1995. Rodgers died on February 8, 2000, and was buried at
Holy Cross Cemetery in
North Arlington, New Jersey. ==References==