NJ Republicans Pick Up Assembly Seats, Plus Senate Seat in South
Democrats appear to have lost at least three and as many as five seats in the New Jersey Legislature, including the only Senate race on the ballot. And they did not flip any of the three districts they were targeting in this year’s election, which took place yesterday.
With 100% of districts reporting, Republicans captured the Senate seat in the southernmost 1st District, as well as both Assembly seats there. They also held a smaller lead in the neighboring 2nd, a split district with a Republican senator that includes Atlantic City. That race, however, had not been called with fewer than 800 votes separating the second and third place finishers and mail-in and provisional ballots apparently uncounted as of midnight. Final results there may not be available for several days.
Democrats were also unable to flip seats in three districts they had been targeting, although they did keep control of the Assembly seats in two others considered competitive.
Doug Steinhardt, chairman of the state Republican Party, took a victory lap at Assembly Republican leader Jon Bramnick’s election night party. “We’ve done a great job as a state party, laying a foundation for the future,” he said. “I am proud of our message (and) our candidates statewide.”
It was a relatively quiet election season in much of the state and Democratic control of the Assembly was never in doubt. The party went into Election Day holding 54 of 80 seats and will likely start the new session in January with a reduced but still significant majority of 50 to 30. Paradoxically, the loss of seats in South Jersey could improve Gov. Phil Murphy’s standing, as the South Jersey Democrats who lost seats have sided with fellow South Jerseyan Sen. President Steve Sweeney (D-Gloucester) against Murphy in an ongoing intraparty feud.
https://www.njspotlight.com/2019/11/some-surprises-as-republicans-pick-up-assembly-seats-plus-senate-seat-in-south/
