[20] Located between the Passaic and Whippany rivers, East Hanover shares a border with four Essex County municipalities; but only has roadways that connect the township with neighboring Livingston and Roseland.

Since the creation of Hanover Township in 1720, its size has been considerably decreased as the population of the area has increased.

Originally encompassing large portions of Morris County and parts of both Sussex and Warren County, Hanover Township became too unwieldy for a single local government and municipalities split off from the township over time.

[37] The governing body under the Small Municipality plan is comprised of the Mayor and the Township Council.

[6][38] As of 2024[update], East Hanover's Mayor is Republican Joseph Pannullo, whose term of office ends December 31, 2027.

[3][41][42][43][44][45][46] In February 2023, the mayor and the four council members, all of whom had been elected as Democrats, changed their political affiliation and became Republicans.

[49] For the 119th United States Congress, New Jersey's 11th congressional district is represented by Mikie Sherrill (D, Montclair).

[51] For the 2024-2025 session, the 26th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Joseph Pennacchio (R, Rockaway Township) and in the General Assembly by Brian Bergen (R, Denville Township) and Jay Webber (R, Morris Plains).

[53] Actual day-to-day operation of departments is supervised by County Administrator Deena Leary.

[97] East Hanover contains many public parks and open space reserved for a variety of uses.

Its 823 acres (333 ha) of public space are either maintained by the township itself, the Morris County Parks Commission, the non-profit Wildlife Preserves, Inc., or the State of New Jersey.

The park contains the municipal pool, a large playground, an artificial turf football field, basketball courts and a seasonal ice-skating rank.

A paved multi-use path, paired with benches, picnic tables, and a pavilion seating area, encompasses the perimeter of the park.

It contains a small, paved multi-use path, seating area, and contains various memorials and historical monuments.

Sommer Park, located at the end of Fairway Drive near Frank J. Smith Elementary School, consists of a baseball field.

Dean D'ambola Park, situated off of Mount Pleasant Avenue (CR 677), contains an artificial turf baseball field.

The Whippany and Passaic River blueways, Troy Road Greenway, Fox Run Preserve, Harvest Grove and the historic Ridgedale Airport (Hanover Airport) are other public sites owned and maintained by the township.

Nearby is Hatfield Swamp, a wildlife reserve with 1,000 acres (400 ha) of freshwater marshes and forested land, bordered by the Rockaway, Passaic and Whippany rivers.

It continues through and ends in East Hanover, where it connects to the Lenape Trail in Roseland.

Within the township, the trail mostly runs along Ridgedale Avenue (CR 632) and travels through Lurker Park.

For East Hanover, it includes the construction of a multi-use path equipped with boardwalk bridges and an improved surface, beginning at two points, Lurker Park and Patriots' Path, and culminating at River Road.

Route 10 is the main highway providing local access to East Hanover.

Commuter service is provided with trains heading to Hoboken Terminal, and to New York Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan via the Kearny Connection.

[108] Newark Liberty International Airport, located in Newark/Elizabeth, is situated approximately 19 miles (31 km) east of the township.