Despite decades of high inflation and an unpopular Democratic president, there has never been a red wave that has swept through New Jersey.
The picture may be a little different once all the local races are settled. In addition to Congress, voters in many cities would choose mayors and council members and vote for their councils of education. These races are important, as they are the building blocks of grassroots political efforts in local communities.
However, in terms of Congress, Democrats have fared much better than many expected.
More than $70 million was spent in the Garden State’s congressional contests, but Democrats held a solid majority of seats.
net effect
It was a good night, but not great, for the Republicans. The same can be said of the Democrats.
While the Republican Party likely won control of the House of Representatives, the Democrats may still control the Senate.
Jon Fetterman’s victory over Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania was colossal, giving President Joe Biden’s party some breathing if it eventually lost seats elsewhere.
Republicans appear to have flipped one seat in New Jersey’s 7th district, with current Democrat Tom Kaine Jr. leading Tom Malinowski.
Kane took the stage at the campaign headquarters and appeared to declare victory.
“We had an opportunity to change the course of history,” he said. “My solemn pledge to you will always be to serve with dignity, to listen, to learn, and to earn this responsibility.”
Malinowski said the race remained “very close to the competition”.
The Associated Press has not announced the winner yet.
In another closely watched race, Democrat Andy Kim defeated his Republican opponent and won a third term in Congress. Kim faced serious name recognition challenges in the heavily manipulated third district after the 2020 census. The changes added more registered Democratic voters, and that ultimately helped his victory.
Republicans thought they had a chance to grab the Democrat seats held by Josh Gotheimer and Mickey Sherrill, but both won handily.
There was little drama in the remaining New Jersey congressional races.
- Democrat Robert Menendez (son of U.S. Senator Bob Menendez) won the 8th District, which includes parts of Newark, Jersey City, and Elizabeth. The seat was opened with the retirement of Representative Albio Ceres.
- Republican Christopher Smith won 22nd state in District 4, stretching from the center of the Jersey Shore to the Trenton metropolitan area.
- Democrat Frank Balloni Jr. won a 19th term in District Six that includes parts of the Jersey Shore and Middlesex County.
- Democrat Donald Norcross won re-election in Southwest New Jersey’s 1st District
- Democrat Donald Payne Jr. won a seventh term in the 10th district, which includes parts of Essex, Hudson and Union counties, and includes the cities of Newark and Orange.
- Democrat Bill Pascrell won a new state in District 9, which includes his hometown of Patterson.
- Bonnie Watson Coleman won in the 12th arrondissement.
- Republican Jeff Van Drew was re-elected in the 2nd District.
Is it really important?
The Republican now holds 3 of New Jersey’s 12 House seats, which is one net change.
The effect of congressional formation in New Jersey will vary. If Republicans control the House, those Republican-controlled counties of New Jersey would likely benefit in terms of federal projects and dollars pouring in from Washington, but with a Democratic president and potential House of Representatives, those effects would be minimal.
Every representative in Congress in New Jersey has a strong task force dealing with foundational issues, and these tend to be nonpartisan, so the real-life impact on the average resident of the state will actually be minimal.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Eric Scott is Senior Policy Director and Broadcaster for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at [email protected]
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What is the average cost of a NJ home? Average prices by county
Everything costs more these days – and housing is certainly no exception in New Jersey.
Data for 2022 from January to August, compiled by New Jersey Realtors, shows that South Jersey has seen homes appear on the market and sell in less than a month, on average.
Average single-family home prices reached $500,000 and up in nine counties in North and Central Jersey.
All but two counties have seen home prices rise above list price, on average, this year.