Salem County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders who are elected at-large to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year. At an annual reorganization meeting held in the beginning of January, the board selects a Director and a Deputy Director from among its members. The appointed position professional county administrator was abolished by a unanimous vote of the freeholders in January 2014. In 2016, freeholders were paid $25,410 and the freeholder director was paid an annual salary of $26,410.