Blue Wave in New Jersey: Gov. Murphy, NJDSC Help Elect Sen. Menendez, Congressional Challengers and Democrats Across the State

TRENTON, N.J. — A Blue Wave has washed over New Jersey, and the result is tremendous victories for Democrats from the federal to local levels thanks in part to the work of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee, led by Governor Phil Murphy and Chairman John Currie. U.S. Senator Bob Menendez was re-elected by a ten point margin, a strong repudiation of the Trump agenda and his opponent Bob Hugin who spent $40 million on his campaign with much of it funding demonstrably false attack ads. Senator Menendez will be joined in Washington by at least three new Democratic House members, as Mikie Sherrill, Tom Malinowski and Jeff Van Drew each won their races. Meanwhile, the Andy Kim-Tom MacArthur race remains too close to call with Vote By Mail ballots still being counted.

“New Jersey voted its values yesterday, and the result is unprecedented Democratic victories in all parts of our state,” said Governor Murphy, who finished a grueling campaign schedule yesterday along with First Lady Tammy Murphy that included 66 events in ten days. “We voted for decency, inclusion and fairness while rejecting division, petty political finger-pointing and gratuitous attacks. I am incredibly proud of our state and energized to take the forward momentum we have built and channel it to enacting progressive policies here in New Jersey and continuing to build towards even greater victories in 2019 and 2020.”

With the help of Governor Murphy and the First Lady, the NJDSC has spent the past several months working with Senator Menendez’s campaign as well as Congressional and county campaigns to execute the largest Get out the Vote operation in New Jersey history. NJDSC also provided new tools for voters to encourage their friends and families to vote for Democrats up and down the ballot and resources to make a plan to get to polls.

“From Hudson to Camden, from Atlantic to Hunterdon and everywhere in between last night was a tremendous victory for Democrats,” said First Lady Tammy Murphy. “The Governor and I met thousands of New Jersey residents in recent weeks while working to build support for Democrats, and I could not be more proud of the many local activists, volunteers and candidates who put in the hard work and time to make these victories possible.”

In the past year, the NJDSC helped registered over 90,000 new Democratic voters by working with progressive and grassroots advocates. This enthusiasm and Blue Wave energy was on full display at this year’s NJDSC Conference in Atlantic City in September, which saw a record attendance of over 2,000 people.

“Our New Jersey Democratic State Committee has never been stronger and that has allowed us to invest in building our party across the state and connecting with Democratic voters,” said NJDSC Chairman John Currie. “Yesterday’s victories are a result of the investments we have made in building our party thanks to the leadership of Governor Murphy, and I look forward to continuing that effort as we move into a new election cycle.”

Voters in Essex County and Hudson County turned out in historic numbers for a midterm election and delivered pluralities of approximately 115,000 and 85,000 votes to Senator Menendez, respectively. Democrats also saw strong turnout in Middlesex, Bergen, Union, Mercer and Passaic counties, adding to the Senator’s lead and helping win dozens of local races.

“New Jersey residents from all backgrounds voted in tremendous numbers yesterday, but it was particularly inspiring to see such massive turnout among African American and Hispanic voters in our urban core counties,” said NJDSC Vice Chair Lizette Delgado-Polanco. “We have invested real resources in these communities and we will continue to work with local elected and activist leaders to make sure our Democratic base stays engaged and energized.”

Democrats won seats in several traditionally Republican areas last night, with many coming after NJDSC invested significant financial and staff resources in them. Democrats Shanel Robinson and Sara Sooy won seats on the Somerset County Freeholder Board, the first Democratic victories for that office since the 1980s. Democrats also took control of the Burlington County Freeholder Board, elected a Democratic mayor and two new Democratic council members in Flemington, Hunterdon County, won a Mayor’s race in Morris Plains and Council races in both Chatham and Morris Township in Morris County.

“While the victories by Senator Menendez, Mikie Sherrill, Tom Malinowski and Jeff Van Drew are absolutely thrilling, the wins for Democrats on the local and county level are satisfying and significant,” said NJDSC Executive Director Liz Gilbert. “The investments we made in and with our Democratic County Chairs in Somerset, Hunterdon, Monmouth and Morris counties resulted in Democrats being elected to Freeholder Boards and local Councils in many longtime Republican strongholds. This is how we will build our Democratic Party and we look forward to expanding our efforts in 2019.”

New Jersey is the bluest it has been in decades, a true testament to the NJDSC’s commitment to growing a stronger party by providing the next generation of Democratic leaders with training and resources they need to succeed. The NJDSC will continue to provide financial and operational support to Democrats seeking office and New Jerseyans can expect this Blue Wave to ride into Election Days for years to come.