2017 New Jersey Senate election
The 2017 New Jersey State Senate elections were held on November 7, 2017, to elect senators for all 40 legislative districts across New Jersey. These elections coincided with the [New Jersey gubernatorial New Jersey gubernatorial election, 2017|election, 2017|election] of Governor Phil Murphy. The winners of this election would serve in the 218th New Jersey Legislature, with seats apportioned based on the 2010 United States census. The Democratic Party grew its majority in the Senate, with incumbent Senate President Steve Sweeney re-elected to the top leadership post. Republican Thomas Kean, Jr. continued to lead his party as minority leader. This was the first state Senate election cycle in 10 years where any party flipped a Senate seat.
Democrats flipped the 7th and 11th districts, while Republicans flipped the 2nd. Democrats briefly held 26 seats from January through December 2019 following the party switch of Dawn Addiego, resulting in the Democrats controlling the highest percentage of seats since 1977. However, a 2019 special election in District 1 reduced the Democrats back to 25 seats.
| Contents Summary of results • Incumbents not running By District: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 35 • 36 • 37 • 38 • 39 • 40 |
Summary of results
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center rowspan= 2 colspan=2| Parties!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan=4| Seats
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan=3| Popular vote
Incumbents not seeking re-election
Democratic
Republican
In addition, four members who were elected in the prior election in 2013 had since left office: Donald Norcross, Peter J. Barnes III, Kevin J. O'Toole, and Jim Whelan.Summary of results by State Senate district
Close races
Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%:- '
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- gain
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Results by district
District 1
Democratic primary
Declared- Jeff Van Drew, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Mary Gruccio, auperintendent of Vineland Public Schools and former Cumberland County freeholder
Independents and third parties
Declared- Anthony Parisi Sanchez, community activist and former Marine Corps reservist
General election
EndorsementsPolling
| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jeff Van Drew | Mary Gruccio | Other | Undecided |
| Stockton University | September 13–18, 2017 | 430 LV | ± 4.7% | 61% | 28% | 4% | 5% |
Results
District 2
Incumbent Democratic senator Jim Whelan declined to seek a fourth term, announcing his retirement on January 4, 2017. Whelan died in office on August 22.Democratic primary
Declared- Colin Bell, former Atlantic County freeholder and nominee for Assembly in 2015
- Vince Mazzeo, state assemblyman
Following the death of Whelan on August 22, 2017, Bell was unanimously selected to fill the remainder of his term by local Democratic committee members on September 5, and was sworn in on October 5.
Republican primary
Declared- Chris A. Brown, state assemblyman
General election
EndorsementsPolling
| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Colin Bell | Chris Brown | Other | Undecided |
| Stockton University | October 26 – November 1, 2017 | 530 LV | ± 4.3% | 43% | 46% | 1% | 8% |
| Stockton University | September 23–28, 2017 | 521 LV | ± 4.3% | 46.5% | 46.2% | <1% | 5% |
Results
District 3
Democratic primary
Declared- Stephen M. Sweeney, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Fran Grenier, chairman of the Salem County Republican Party and former Woodstown borough councilman
General election
Polling| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Stephen M. Sweeney | Fran Grenier | Undecided |
| Global Strategy Group | October 9–12, 2017 | 402 LV | ± 4.9% | 48% | 36% | 14% |
| Cygnal | October 9–11, 2017 | 402 LV | ± 4.87% | 42% | 36% | 22% |
| Cygnal | September 19–20, 2017 | 402 LV | ± 4.87% | 48% | 30% | 22% |
Endorsements
Results
District 4
Democratic primary
Declared- Fred H. Madden, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Michael Pascetta
Pascetta was not on the official list of candidates for the general election.
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 5
Democratic primary
Declared- Nilsa Cruz-Perez, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Keith Walker, nominee for Senate in 2011 and 2013
Independents and third parties
Declared- Mohammad Kabir
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 6
Democratic primary
Declared- James Beach, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Robert Shapiro
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 7
Citing health concerns, incumbent Republican senator Diane Allen declined to run for a seventh term, announcing her retirement on January 31, 2017.Republican primary
Declared- Rob Prisco, Riverside Township committeeman and nominee for Assembly in 2015
On June 13, Governor Chris Christie nominated Prisco to a worker's compensation judgeship, whom consequently would later drop out. Local Republican committee members selected Delanco Mayor John Browne as a replacement candidate on September 6.
Democratic primary
Declared- Troy Singleton, state assemblyman
- Cory Cottingham
- Herb Conaway, state assemblyman
- Carol A. Murphy, director of policy and communication for Assemblywoman Gabriela Mosquera
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 8
Republican primary
Declared- Dawn Marie Addiego, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- George B. Youngkin
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 9
Republican primary
Declared- Christopher J. Connors, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Brian Corley White, attorney
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 10
Republican primary
Declared- James W. Holzapfel, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Emma Mammano, mental health counselor
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 11
Republican primary
Declared- Jennifer Beck, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Vin Gopal, businessman, nominee for Assembly in 2011, and former chairman of the Monmouth County Democratic Party
General election
EndorsementsPolling
| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jennifer Beck | Vin Gopal |
| Greenberg Quinlan Rosner | October 30 – November 1, 2017 | 400 LV | ± 4.9% | 48% | 49% |
| Greenberg Quinlan Rosner | July 17–19, 2017 | 400 LV | ± 4.9% | 52% | 41% |
Results
District 12
Republican primary
Declared- Art Haney, chairman of the Old Bridge Republican Party and former mayor of Old Bridge
- Samuel D. Thompson, incumbent senator
Results
Democratic primary
Declared- David Lande, attorney
Independents and third parties
Declared- Kevin Antoine, SUNY health professor
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 13
Incumbent Republican senator Joe Kyrillos announced that he would not run for a ninth term on October 25, 2016.Republican primary
Declared- Declan O'Scanlon, state assemblyman
- Amy Handlin, state assemblywoman
Democratic primary
Declared- Sean Byrnes, former Middletown Township committeeman
- Joshua Leinsdorf, former Princeton school board member and perennial candidate
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 14
Democratic primary
Declared- Linda R. Greenstein, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Bruce MacDonald, jewelry store owner
- Ileana Schirmer, Hamilton Township (Mercer) councilwoman
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 15
Democratic primary
Declared- Shirley Turner, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Lee Eric Newton
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 16
Republican primary
Declared- Christopher Bateman, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Laurie Poppe, attorney, social worker, and nominee for Hillsborough Township Committee in 2015 and 2016
- Zenon Christodoulu, businessman
- Andrew Koontz, Mercer County freeholder
- Liz Lempert, mayor of Princeton
- Andrew Zwicker, state assemblyman
General election
EndorsementsPolling
| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Christopher Bateman | Laurie Poppe |
| Greenberg Quinlan Rosner | August 17–21, 2017 | 401 LV | ± 4.9% | 48% | 40% |
Results
District 17
Democratic primary
Declared- Bill Irwin, Piscataway Board of Education president
- Bob Smith, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Daryl J. Kipnis, attorney
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 18
Democratic primary
Declared- Patrick J. Diegnan, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Mark Csizmar, former East Brunswick police officer and nominee for East Brunswick Township Council in 2016
Csizmar was replaced on the ballot for the general election by Lewis Glogower, who was previously one of the nominees for [|the Assembly seat].
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 19
Democratic primary
Declared- Joe Vitale, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Arthur J. Rittenhouse Jr.
Following the primary, Rittenhouse dropped out of the race on September 14.
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 20
Incumbent Democratic senator Raymond Lesniak declined to run for re-election and instead ran for governor.Democratic primary
Declared- Joseph Cryan, Union County Sheriff, former state assemblyman, and former chairman of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee
Republican primary
Declared- Ashraf Hanna
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 21
Republican primary
Declared- Thomas Kean Jr., incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Jill LaZare, attorney and nominee for Assembly in 2013 and 2015
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 22
Democratic primary
Declared- Nicholas Scutari, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Joseph A. Bonilla
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 23
Republican primary
Declared- Michael J. Doherty, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Christine Lui Chen, health care executive
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 24
Republican primary
Declared- William Hayden, NJDOT employee and vice president of the Skylands Tea Party
- Steve Oroho, incumbent senator
- Gail Phoebus, state assemblywoman
Democratic primary
Declared- Jennifer Hamilton, attorney
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 25
Republican primary
Declared- Anthony Bucco, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Lisa Bhimani, OB/GYN
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 26
Republican primary
Declared- Joseph Pennacchio, incumbent senator
- Tom Mastrangelo, Morris County freeholder
Democratic primary
Declared- Elliot Isibor, nominee for Assembly in 2011 and 2013
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 27
Democratic primary
Declared- Richard Codey, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Pasquale "Pat" Capozzoli, Caldwell borough councilman
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 28
Democratic primary
Declared- Ronald Rice, incumbent senator
Republican primary
No Republicans filed.Results
Independents and third parties
Declared- Troy Knight-Napper
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 29
Democratic primary
Declared- Teresa Ruiz, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Maria E. Lopez
Independents and third parties
Declared- Pablo Olivera, perennial candidate
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 30
Republican primary
Declared- Robert Singer, incumbent senator
Democratic primary
Declared- Amy Sara Cores, attorney
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 31
Democratic primary
Declared- Sandra Bolden Cunningham, incumbent senator
- Angela V. McKnight, state assemblywoman
Republican primary
Declared- Herminio Mendoza
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 32
Democratic primary
Declared- Nicholas Sacco, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Paul Castelli
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 33
Democratic primary
Declared- Brian P. Stack, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Beth Hamburger
General election
ResultsDistrict 34
Democratic primary
Declared- Nia Gill, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Mahir Saleh
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 35
Democratic primary
Declared- Nellie Pou, incumbent senator
- Haytham Younes, real estate investor and candidate for Paterson City Council in 2014
Republican primary
Declared- Marwan Sholakh
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 36
Democratic primary
Declared- Paul Sarlo, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Jeanine Ferrara
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 37
Democratic primary
Declared- Loretta Weinberg, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Eric P. Fisher
- Modesto Romero
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 38
Democratic primary
Declared- Robert M. Gordon, incumbent senator
Republican primary
Declared- Kelly Langschultz, New Milford borough councilwoman
- John Cosgrove, mayor of Fair Lawn
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 39
Republican primary
Declared- Gerald Cardinale, incumbent senator
- John McCann, former Cresskill borough councilman
Democratic primary
Declared- Linda Schwager, mayor of Oakland
Independents and third parties
Declared- James Tosone
General election
EndorsementsResults
District 40
Incumbent Republican senator Kevin J. O'Toole announced on January 15, 2016, that he would not run for re-election. On March 13, 2017, he was confirmed by the state senate to the board of commissioners of The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. O'Toole, however, did not immediately resign to accept the position, staying for the time being in his Senate seat to "tie up loose ends." He officially resigned his seat on July 1.Republican primary
Declared- Edward Buttimore, former investigator for the New Jersey Attorney General
- Kristin Corrado, Passaic County Clerk
- Paul DiGaetano, chairman of the Bergen County Republican Party and former state assemblyman
Following O'Toole's resignation, Corrado was selected without opposition by local Republican committee members to serve the remainder of his term on July 26, and was sworn in on October 5.
Democratic primary
Declared- Thomas Duch, Garfield City Manager
General election
EndorsementsPolling
| Poll source | Date administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Kristin Corrado | Thomas Duch | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | October 23 – 25, 2017 | 669 | ± 5.0% | 43% | 36% | 21% |
Results