New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District election, 2018

Elections in New Jersey, 2018

• General election: Nov. 6
• Voter registration deadline: Oct. 16
• Early voting: Sept. 22 - Nov. 5
• Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6

• Online registration: No
• Same-day registration: No
• Voter ID: No
• Poll times: 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

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On the ballot: U.S. Senate • U.S. House • Special state legislative • State ballot measures • School boards • Municipal • Democratic primaries • Republican primaries

2020 → ← 2016
New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District
Democratic primary Republican primary General election
Election details
Filing deadline: April 2, 2018
Primary: June 5, 2018 General: November 6, 2018 Pre-election incumbent: Frank LoBiondo (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voting in New Jersey
Race ratings
Cook Partisan Voter Index (2018): R+1 Cook Political Report: Likely Democratic Inside Elections: Likely Democratic Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
See also
New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th New Jersey elections, 2018 U.S. Congress elections, 2018 U.S. Senate elections, 2018 U.S. House elections, 2018 Alabama U.S. House racesAlaska U.S. House racesArizona U.S. House racesArkansas U.S. House racesCalifornia U.S. House racesColorado U.S. House racesConnecticut U.S. House racesDelaware U.S. House racesFlorida U.S. House racesGeorgia U.S. House racesHawaii U.S. House racesIdaho U.S. House racesIllinois U.S. House racesIndiana U.S. House racesIowa U.S. House racesKansas U.S. House racesKentucky U.S. House racesLouisiana U.S. House racesMaine U.S. House racesMaryland U.S. House racesMassachusetts U.S. House racesMichigan U.S. House racesMinnesota U.S. House racesMississippi U.S. House racesMissouri U.S. House racesMontana U.S. House racesNebraska U.S. House racesNevada U.S. House racesNew Hampshire U.S. House racesNew Jersey U.S. House racesNew Mexico U.S. House racesNew York U.S. House racesNorth Carolina U.S. House racesNorth Dakota U.S. House racesOhio U.S. House racesOklahoma U.S. House racesOregon U.S. House racesPennsylvania U.S. House racesRhode Island U.S. House racesSouth Carolina U.S. House racesSouth Dakota U.S. House racesTennessee U.S. House racesTexas U.S. House racesUtah U.S. House racesVermont U.S. House racesVirginia U.S. House racesWashington U.S. House racesWest Virginia U.S. House racesWisconsin U.S. House racesWyoming U.S. House racesSubmit

Jeff Van Drew (D) defeated Seth Grossman (R) and four other candidates in the 2018 general election for New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District.

All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. The Democratic Party gained a net total of 40 seats, winning control of the chamber. This race was identified as a 2018 battleground that might have affected partisan control of the U.S. House in the 116th Congress. Heading into the election, the Republican Party was in the majority holding 235 seats to Democrats' 193 seats, with seven vacant seats. Democrats needed to win 23 GOP-held seats in 2018 to win control of the House. From 1918 to 2016, the president’s party lost an average of 29 seats in midterm elections.

Incumbent Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R), who was first elected in 1995, did not seek re-election. According to Politico, LoBiondo's decision not to run for re-election in 2018 "opens a battleground district in southern New Jersey that LoBiondo has held easily since 1994." This district elected Trump with 50.6 percent to Hillary Clinton's 46 percent in 2016. But former President Barack Obama won the state twice with between 53 and 54 percent of the vote.

Third party, independent, and write-in candidates included John Ordille (L) and independent candidates Anthony Parisi Sanchez, William Benfer, and Steven Fenichel.

For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House New Jersey District 2

The following candidates ran in the general election for U.S. House New Jersey District 2 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Van Drew (D)	52.9	136,685
		Seth Grossman (R)	45.2	116,866
		John Ordille (L)	0.7	1,726
		Steven Fenichel (Time for Truth Party)	0.4	1,154
		Anthony Parisi Sanchez (Cannot Be Bought Party)	0.4	1,064
		William Benfer (Together We Can Party)	0.3	868

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 258,363 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House New Jersey District 2

Jeff Van Drew defeated Tanzie Youngblood, Will Cunningham, and Nathan Kleinman in the Democratic primary for U.S. House New Jersey District 2 on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Van Drew	57.0	16,901
		Tanzie Youngblood	18.5	5,495
		Will Cunningham	16.2	4,795
		Nathan Kleinman	8.3	2,467

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 29,658
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Sean Thom (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House New Jersey District 2

Seth Grossman defeated Hirsh Singh, Samuel Fiocchi, and Robert Turkavage in the Republican primary for U.S. House New Jersey District 2 on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Seth Grossman	39.0	10,215
		Hirsh Singh	30.5	7,983
		Samuel Fiocchi	23.3	6,107
	Submit photo	Robert Turkavage	7.1	1,854

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 26,159
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• James Toto (R)
• Brian Fitzherbert (R)
• Mark McGovern (R)

Candidate profiles

See also: Editorial approach to writing about key campaign messages

Seth Grossman, attorney

Party: Republican

Incumbent: No

Political office: City Council of Atlantic City (1986-1990)

Biography: Grossman graduated from Duke University and Temple Law School. He was in the Army National Guard unit at the Atlantic City Armory for six years. He started a law practice in Atlantic City in 1975 and later moved to Somers Point. Grossman began hosting talk radio programs in 2001. From 2009 to 2011, he taught at Atlantic Cape Community College. Grossman also founded and led the Chelsea Neighborhood Association from 1975 through 1992.

Key messages

• Grossman said one of his campaign priorities was to enforce immigration laws and "[r]educe legal immigration to sustainable levels."

• Grossman campaigned on supporting President Trump and stated that if elected, "I will forcefully defend and protect President Trump and his agenda every way I can."

• Grossman stated that if elected, he would work to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

Jeff Van Drew, New Jersey state senator

Party: Democratic

Incumbent: No

Political office: New Jersey State Senate (Assumed office: 2007), New Jersey General Assembly (2002-2007)

Biography: Van Drew earned his B.S. from Rutgers University and his D.D.S from Fairleigh Dickinson University Dental School. His professional experience includes working as a family dentist.

Key messages

• Van Drew campaigned on finding common ground between Democrats and Republicans. "Expect to hear a lot from me during this campaign about finding common ground...The future of our democracy depends on finding ways around our differences, so we can work together on all that we have in common."

• Van Drew mentioned college affordability, bringing manufacturing jobs to South Jersey, lowering the cost of healthcare, and lowering taxes as among his campaign priorities.

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District general election, 2018
Poll	Seth Grossman	Jeff Van Drew	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Stockton University Sept. 12-18, 2018	32%	55%	+/-4.2	535
Note: A "0%" finding means the question was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

Campaign finance

The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Jeff Van Drew	Democratic Party	$1,897,309	$1,893,108	$4,200	As of December 31, 2018
Seth Grossman	Republican Party	$314,048	$308,651	$5,274	As of December 31, 2018
Anthony Parisi Sanchez	Cannot Be Bought Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
John Ordille	Libertarian Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Steven Fenichel	Time for Truth Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
William Benfer	Together We Can Party	$40	$531	$-166	As of December 31, 2018
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." ** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election. *** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

Race ratings

Race ratings: New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District election, 2018
Race tracker	Race ratings
	October 30, 2018	October 23, 2018	October 16, 2018	October 9, 2018
The Cook Political Report	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic	Likely Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

District analysis

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+1, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 1 percentage point more Republican than the national average. This made New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District the 231st most Republican nationally.

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.05. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.05 points toward that party.

Noteworthy endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. It also includes a bulleted list of links to official lists of endorsements for any candidates who published that information on their campaign websites. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please click here.

Campaign advertisements

This section shows advertisements released in this race. Ads released by campaigns and, if applicable, satellite groups are embedded or linked below. If you are aware of advertisements that should be included, please email us.

Seth Grossman

Support

"I Spoke Out Against Tolls and Got Arrested!" - Seth Grossman for Congress ad, released August 24, 2018

"It Happens to Atlantic City First" - Seth Grossman for Congress ad, released August 24, 2018

"Grew Up in Atlantic City" - Seth Grossman for Congress ad, released August 24, 2018

"Seth Grossman Lawsuit" - Seth Grossman for Congress ad, released August 24, 2018

Campaign themes

The themes below were taken from the candidates' campaign websites.

Seth Grossman

Enforce Immigration Laws

Reduce legal immigration to sustainable levels. Immigration laws were strictly enforced From 1917 to 1966. Legal immigration was limited to roughly 300,000 per year. This allowed immigrants and their children to quickly learn English and become mainstream Americans. These immigration laws also promoted high wages, full employment, good schools, low taxes, and safe neighborhoods.

Beginning in 1965, Ted Kennedy Democrats completely changed our immigration laws. The new 1965 immigration laws had the purpose and effect of dividing and weakening America. If we do not act quickly they will destroy America as the free, safe, prosperous, and united country most of us grew up in. At some point in his life, Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy came to hate the America that his older brothers Joe, John, and Robert loved and died for. The 1965 Immigration Law was just the first of countless ways Ted Kennedy showed his hatred for America during his 44 years in the U.S. Senate.

Bush Republicans did it to give big profits and cheap labor to their corporate donors. The new 1965 immigration law, and changes made by Carter, Bush, Clinton, and Obama brought more than one million legal immigrants to America each year. Far too many of these immigrants are not assimilating.

Many actually hate our American culture and constitutional government and want to change us. This also makes it difficult, if not impossible to enforce immigration laws. We have anywhere from 11 million to 30 million foreigners living illegally in our country in addition to roughly 41 million legal immigrants. Instead of offering the American Dream, many American cities today offer immigrants the same misery, violence, and poverty they had in the countries they left.

Support President Trump

President Trump has been in public life since he first came to Atlantic City some 36 years ago. His strengths and weaknesses are well known to many of us. We know that Donald Trump was never accused of being racist, crazy, or an agent of the Russians until he got active in politics and demanded the enforcement of our immigration laws and the repeal of Obamacare. Only then did the FBI and other federal agencies lie to judges so they could illegally tap the phones of Trump and his top officials.

After failing to remove Trump and block his agenda for the past 16 months, Democrats now want majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives so they can impeach him on fake charges and continue Obama’s agenda.

If elected, I will forcefully defend and protect President Trump and his agenda every way I can.

Repeal Remnants of Obamacare

Most Americans enjoyed good, affordable health insurance until President Obama and a Democratic majority in Congress adopted Obamacare in 2010. Obamacare forces forced every America to buy expensive coverage for services and procedures most of us don’t want, don’t need, or can buy cheaper on our own.

For years, Republicans promised to repeal Obamacare if they were again given control of the Federal government. When President Trump took office, a handful of Republican Senators stopped Trump and the rest of the Republicans in Congress from keeping their promise.

Although the individual mandate was eliminated as part of the tax reform law passed last year, Obamacare still makes health insurance far too expensive for those who want it. If elected, I will continually work to repeal Obamacare.

Allow Americans To Defend Themselves

The tragedy in Florida exposed many failures of government to protect our children. Here in nearby Margate, New Jersey residents were shocked to learn that a young local resident and recent Atlantic City High School graduate had joined the Islamic State. He is now in Syria torturing and executing prisoners. He also made a recruiting video urging young Muslim men in America to kill “kaffirs” (non-Muslims).

Until now, federal laws have made it difficult for school officials and ordinary citizens to take common sense action to protect our children. If elected, I will support laws to encourage local officials to do what they find necessary to protect them. Those measures include allowing qualified, trained, law abiding school employees to carry weapons. They would also include allowing counselors, psychologists, and teachers to legally share information with each other and law enforcement officials on deadly threats they learn from students.

Jeff Van Drew

Agriculture

New Jersey is the Garden State and that is because we have one of the biggest and best agriculture industries (valued at over $1 billion a year) in the country. Here in South Jersey, we have a strong farming history and these family farms work every day to put food on our tables. It is imperative that we promote policy that will protect this industry and its huge contribution to our economic success.

College Affordability

Education is the essence of American opportunity. A quality education levels the playing field and makes the system fair, but it has become unaffordable for so many South Jersey families. The skyrocketing costs of a college education are saddling many with outrageous student loan debt, which stops young families from becoming first-time home buyers and stagnates economic growth. We must get serious about this financial crisis, and reduce the existing burden so that we can grow our economy.

Civil Rights

In Congress, I will strongly defend the civil rights of every person. Our civil liberties are fundamental to what it means to be an American. I will fight every day to ensure that every American is treated equally regardless of race, religion, color, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation.

Economy

The Great Recession, coupled with the collapse of four casinos and the loss of 10,000 jobs, hit South Jersey harder than almost any other region in the United States. Atlantic County has the highest foreclosure rate in the Nation, and for years we have lagged behind the rest of the country in unemployment. Thankfully, Atlantic City appears on the rebound, which will be further bolstered by the legalization of sports betting. But we must do more. We have to work to bring manufacturing jobs back to South Jersey. We have to do all that we can to promote our vital tourism economy. Government needs to do more to help, not hinder, our agriculture and fishing industries. There is so much potential here in South Jersey, and I will work every day to fight to bring jobs back here for our working families.

Equal Pay

I’m proud of the work we have done in New Jersey to tackle income inequality by passing laws to ensure equal pay for equal work. Now, I want to champion that policy in Washington and require equal pay for every woman in America! The time is now.

Fishing

Commercial and recreational fishing combine to make one of the biggest industries in New Jersey, and an industry that is vital to coastal South Jersey. Cape May, Atlantic City, and Barnegat Light are three of the busiest fishing ports on the entire East Coast, bringing in billions of dollars of economic activity to our State and its working families. I have been an ardent advocate for fishermen in Trenton, and I will take that fight to Congress.

Healthcare

As a Dentist, I have a firsthand understanding of the American healthcare system and the need to make it both accessible and affordable. Instead of working to address the root problem of the high cost of healthcare, Congress has increased costs on all of us, and are even trying to make it tougher for those with preexisting conditions to get the coverage they need. Together, we must focus on reforms to the Affordable Care Act that protect our families and small businesses, and work to lower the high cost of healthcare and prescription drugs.

Immigration

America is a place of hope and opportunity where you can work hard, support your family and create a better life. That dream has become increasingly harder to reach because of our broken immigration system, and we need new approaches that are tough, practical, and fair. We need comprehensive reform that must start by strengthening border security and cracking down on employers that knowingly circumvent the law. Additionally, by requiring employers to verify workers we will reduce the hiring of unauthorized workers, increase the accessibility of visas for high-skilled workers, and allow law-abiding immigrant families to come out of the shadows, pay taxes, play by the rules, and earn their citizenship. We need realistic approaches to protect children that came here as minors and grew up identifying as American, and policies that treat them fairly.

Israel

There is arguably no more important relationship in the world than that of the United States of America and Israel. Our two countries have had a unique relationship since President Truman was the first Head of State to formally recognize the State of Israel in May, 1948, and that special bond continues today. It is a relationship that extends beyond the purely tactical, but speaks to a commonality of shared ideals and values. The United States must never waiver from its steadfast position that the State of Israel has an undeniable right to exist and thrive with the same sense of security and economic self-determination as any other nation in the Middle East. I believe that we must continue this relationship, and do everything we can to strengthen this bond. As Congressman, I will fight to continue this relationship as it is imperative to our national security.

Net Neutrality

As a longtime advocate for consumer protections, I strongly support net neutrality. The attacks on net neutrality directly drive up costs for consumers, shortchange innovation, and limit our freedom. Net Neutrality protections require internet service providers to give their subscribers equal access to every website, saving consumers money; now that is has [sic] been repealed, Internet Service Providers have been given license to charge separate outlandish rates for basic services that Americans use daily. This is unacceptable, and I will fight to restore net neutrality, and a free and open internet, for generations to come.

North Jersey Gaming

The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority recently called reigniting expansion of casino gaming to North Jersey a “top priority,” despite voters’ rejection of this failed ballot question in every single county, and by more than a 3:1 margin statewide. Just as Atlantic City is experiencing new-found economic momentum and excitement over our victory to bring sports betting to South Jersey, the wolves are back at our door. And we will not back down. As Congressman, I will fight against North Jersey casinos and will never let it happen! We must not allow anyone to breathe life into this failed idea, and I guarantee they will face the wrath of our region as we stand united to protect South Jersey families.

Offshore Drilling

For years, I have fought to protect our shore-based economy, and I authored the law to prevent offshore drilling in New Jersey. In response to our efforts, Congress is pushing a radical scheme to financially punish New Jersey taxpayers with hundreds of millions of dollars in federal fees. You can count on me to block this irresponsible legislation, which violates our State’s rights, puts our shore in peril, and would blackmail our residents. This will never happen, not on my watch!

Social Security & Medicare

As a cornerstone of America’s safety net, Social Security enables millions of Americans to retire with an invaluable peace of mind, and Medicare is an effective tool that provides greater healthcare access to millions of low-income Americans, preventing greater poverty. Social Security and Medicare are two of the most successful public programs ever created, and have shielded generations of older Americans from poverty. House Speaker Paul Ryan has been working to dismantle our seniors’ economic security by privatizing Social Security and cutting Medicare. These programs are a handshake agreement between the federal government and senior citizens that must be honored, and I will not stand for any attempts to undermine this commitment. Paying these benefits today is not enough; we must ensure the long-term solvency for future generations. As Congressman, I pledge to:

• Fight any attempt to privatize Social Security and Medicare
• Enable Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices
• Oppose raising the retirement age and any reductions in cost of living adjustments

Tax Reform

We can do better, and as a state lawmaker, I have always fought for tax cuts that benefit our families and small businesses that create local jobs. We need tax reform that benefits middle-class families, not the multi-millionaires and corporate giants. It is time for a real middle-class tax cut that benefits hard-working South Jersey families and small businesses.

Veterans

There is no commitment more important to our country than that of defending it, as millions of brave men and women have done. Our veterans are the heroes of our nation and deserve to be treated as such for being staunch defenders of our freedom. It is shameful that returning veterans often lack job opportunities, access to education, and critical healthcare services, and it is even more shameful that some of our heroes are left homeless and unemployed. As Congressman, I will fight to reverse these failures and I will work tirelessly until this is no longer the sad reality for the brave men and women of our military.

Voting Rights

As it is embedded in our constitution, I believe the right to vote is universal and inalienable for all Americans. I fully support the Voting Rights Amendment Act, which would restore vital voter protections lost in the Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby County v. Holder decision. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights has documented 148 separate instances of voter discrimination between 2000 and 2014. We must eliminate this injustice and ensure that our citizens will not be intimidated or discriminated against when exercising their right to vote.

Social media

Twitter accounts

Tweets by Seth Grossman Tweets by Jeff Van Drew

Facebook accounts

Click the icons below to visit the candidates' Facebook pages.

Seth Grossman

Jeff Van Drew

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Two of 21 New Jersey counties—9.5 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County	Trump margin of victory in 2016	Obama margin of victory in 2012	Obama margin of victory in 2008
Gloucester County, New Jersey	0.48%	10.77%	12.16%
Salem County, New Jersey	15.00%	1.31%	3.92%

In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won New Jersey with 55.5 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 41.4 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, New Jersey voted Democratic 46.67 percent of the time and Republican 53.33 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, New Jersey voted Democratic all five times.

District history

2016

See also: New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Frank LoBiondo (R) defeated David Cole (D) and several third party candidates in the general election on November 8, 2016. LoBiondo faced no challenger in the Republican primary, while Cole defeated Costantino Rozzo in the Democratic primary. The primary elections took place on June 7, 2016. LoBiondo won re-election in the November 8 election.

U.S. House, New Jersey District 2 General Election, 2016

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Frank LoBiondo Incumbent	59.2%	176,338
	Democratic	David Cole	37.2%	110,838
	Libertarian	John Ordille	1.3%	3,773
	Make Government Work	James Keenan	0.9%	2,653
	Representing the 99%	Steven Fenichel	0.5%	1,574
	People's Independent Progressive	Eric Beechwood	0.5%	1,387
	For Political Revolution	Gabriel Brian Franco	0.4%	1,232
Total Votes				297,795
Source: New Jersey Division of Elections

U.S. House, New Jersey District 2 Democratic Primary, 2016

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
David Cole	81.1%	33,961
Constantino Rozzo	18.9%	7,932
Total Votes		41,893
Source: New Jersey Division of Elections

2014

See also: New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District elections, 2014

The 2nd Congressional District of New Jersey held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R) defeated Bill Hughes, Jr. (D), Gary Stein (I), Bayode Olabisi (I), Costantino Rozzo (American Labor Party) and Alexander Spano (Democratic-Republican) in the general election.

U.S. House, New Jersey District 2 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Frank LoBiondo Incumbent	61.5%	108,875
	Democratic	Bill Hughes, Jr.	37.3%	66,026
	Independent	Gary Stein	0.3%	612
	Independent	Bayode Olabisi	0.3%	471
	American Labor Party	Costantino Rozzo	0.3%	501
	Democratic-Republican	Alexander Spano	0.4%	663
Total Votes				177,148
Source: New Jersey Division of Elections

State overview

Partisan control

This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in New Jersey heading into the 2018 elections.

Congressional delegation

• Democrats held both U.S. Senate seats in New Jersey.
• Democrats held seven of 12 U.S. House seats in New Jersey, and Republicans held five.

State executives

• As of May 2018, Democrats held five of 14 state executive positions. The other nine positions were held by nonpartisan officials.
• The governor of New Jersey was Democrat Phil Murphy.

State legislature

• Democrats controlled both chambers of the New Jersey State Legislature. They had a 54-26 majority in the state Assembly and a 25-15 majority in the state Senate.

Trifecta status

• New Jersey was a Democratic trifecta, meaning that the Democratic Party held the governorship, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state Assembly.

2018 elections

See also: New Jersey elections, 2018

New Jersey held elections for the following positions in 2018:

• The Class 1 U.S. Senate seat held by Bob Menendez (D)
• All 12 U.S. House seats
• Local judicial offices
• Local school boards
• Municipal elections in Newark and Essex County

Demographics

Demographic data for New Jersey
	New Jersey	U.S.
Total population:	8,935,421	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	7,354	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	68.3%	73.6%
Black/African American:	13.5%	12.6%
Asian:	9%	5.1%
Native American:	0.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.5%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	19%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	88.6%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	36.8%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$72,093	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	12.7%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in New Jersey. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

As of July 2016, New Jersey had a population of approximately 9 million people, and its three largest cities were New Jersey (pop. est. 283,000), Jersey City (pop. est. 265,000), and Paterson (pop. est. 147,000).

State election history

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in New Jersey from 2000 to 2016.

Historical elections

Presidential elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the presidential election in New Jersey every year from 2000 to 2016.

Election results (President of the United States), New Jersey 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2016	Hillary Clinton	55.5%	Donald Trump	41.4%	14.1%
2012	Barack Obama	58.4%	Mitt Romney	40.6%	17.8%
2008	Barack Obama	57.2%	John McCain	41.7%	15.5%
2004	John Kerry	52.9%	George W. Bush	46.2%	6.7%
2000	Al Gore	56.1%	George W. Bush	40.3%	15.8%

U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in New Jersey from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), New Jersey 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Cory Booker	55.8%	Jeff Bell	42.3%	13.5%
2012	Bob Menendez	58.9%	Joseph Kyrillos	39.4%	19.5%
2008	Frank Lautenberg	56.0%	Dick Zimmer	42.0%	14.0%
2006	Bob Menendez	53.3%	Thomas Kean Jr.	44.3%	9.0%
2002	Frank Lautenberg	53.9%	Doug Forrester	44.0%	9.9%
2000	Jon Corzine	50.1%	Bob Franks	47.1%	3.0%

Gubernatorial elections, 2001-2017

This chart shows the results of the five gubernatorial elections held between 2001 and 2017. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in New Jersey, and, unlike most states, they take place in odd years.

Election results (Governor), New Jersey 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2017	Phil Murphy	56.0%	Kim Guadagno	41.9%	14.1%
2013	Chris Christie	60.3%	Barbara Buono	38.2%	22.1%
2009	Chris Christie	48.5%	Jon Corzine	44.9%	3.6%
2005	Jon Corzine	53.5%	Doug Forrester	43.0%	10.5%
2001	Jim McGreevey	56.4%	Bret Schundler	41.7%	14.7%

Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent New Jersey in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, New Jersey 2000-2016
Year	Republicans	Republicans (%)	Democrats	Democrats (%)	Balance of power
2016	5	41.7%	7	58.3%	D+2
2014	6	50.0%	6	50.0%	Even
2012	6	50.0%	6	50.0%	Even
2010	6	46.2%	7	53.8%	D+1
2008	5	38.5%	8	61.5%	D+3
2006	6	46.2%	7	53.8%	D+1
2004	6	46.2%	7	53.8%	D+1
2002	6	46.2%	7	53.8%	D+1
2000	6	46.2%	7	53.8%	D+1

Trifectas, 1992-2018

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

New Jersey Party Control: 1992-2025
Fourteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  Eight years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25
Governor	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D
Senate	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	S	S	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D
Assembly	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D

,

See also

• New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District election (June 5, 2018 Democratic primary)
• New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District election (June 5, 2018 Republican primary)
• United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey, 2018
• United States House of Representatives elections, 2018

Footnotes

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New Jersey's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Cory Booker (D)

Andrew Kim (D)

Representatives

District 1

Donald Norcross (D)

District 2

Jeff Van Drew (R)

District 3

Herbert Conaway (D)

District 4

Chris Smith (R)

District 5

Josh Gottheimer (D)

District 6

Frank Pallone (D)

District 7

Thomas Kean (R)

District 8

Robert Menendez (D)

District 9

Nellie Pou (D)

District 10

LaMonica McIver (D)

District 11

Mikie Sherrill (D)

District 12

Bonnie Coleman (D)

Democratic Party (11)

Republican Party (3)