Lillian Midge Trainor nearly quintupled her salary, slashed her working time and got out of politics - all in one move.
That move occurred earlier this year when she joined the administration of Gov. Florio, becoming director of the Division of Elections at $59,000 a year.
Trainor left behind her job as chairwoman of the county's bipartisan Board of Elections, of which she was a member for 12 years. While working the part- time job, which paid $12,000 annually, Trainor said she put in full-time hours.
Because her new state job requires her to be impartial about election matters, Trainor gave up her post as vice chairwoman of the county's Democratic Party, which during election campaigns also put difficult demands on her time.
"I am finding so much more free time on my hands with this (the state) job it's absolutely incredible," said Trainor, 53. "I came home from dinner last night and had two messages on my tape where normally if I'm out for three and a half hours in an evening, I come home and find 20."
Political observers said it was Trainor's loyalty to Florio that landed her the state post.
Trainor worked on Florio's first gubernatorial campaign, the 1977 Democratic primary, and in his 1981 campaigns, when Florio won the nomination but missed being governor by the narrowest margin in state history.
It was possible for her to head the County Election Board and remain political because of the board's setup. The board - which hires and trains poll watchers at each of the county's 320 precincts - is made up of two Democrats and two Republicans, and that balance is designed to help protect the election process.
But at the state level, it is different. Trainor is charge of an eight- person office that reviews pending election legislation and sponsors campaigns to get citizens to register.
