Essex County has been the Democratic Party’s largest source of raw votes in New Jersey for decades, providing Kamala Harris with a margin of more than 140,000 votes in 2024 — accounting for 55% of her statewide victory margin.
The county remains one of the Democratic Party’s most important electoral strongholds, not because there is much doubt about which party will carry it, but because of turnout. When Democrats maximize turnout in Essex County, they build the large statewide margins needed to offset Republican advantages and to make races elsewhere in New Jersey more competitive.
The party’s challenge in 2024 was not holding Essex County but reversing the sharp decline in turnout across many of its most reliable urban communities. Democrats continue to dominate the county thanks to overwhelming support in Newark and neighboring urban centers, while also posting commanding margins in affluent, progressive suburbs such as Glen Ridge, Livingston, Maplewood, Millburn, Montclair, and South Orange. Those communities are home to highly educated, high-propensity voters who consistently turn out, even in lower-profile elections.
Donald Trump won 27% of the Essex County vote in 2024, a six-point improvement over his 2020 performance. Stronger Republican showings in traditionally GOP municipalities, combined with lower Democratic turnout in urban strongholds, helped narrow the Democratic statewide margin.
Essex County is expected to remain one of the Democratic Party’s largest vote-producing counties this year, and it is still unusual for Republican candidates to receive more than 30% of the countywide vote.
Despite the county’s overwhelming Democratic advantage, Republicans maintain pockets of strength in Fairfield, Essex Fells, and West Caldwell, municipalities where Democrats rarely mount competitive campaigns.
Democrats are uncontested in Bloomfield, Maplewood, West Orange, and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd County Commissioner districts.
Republicans are uncontested in Essex Fells, Fairfield, and West Caldwell.
Belleville, Irvington, Newark, Orange, and South Orange hold municipal elections in May and therefore have no local races on the November ballot.
Cedar Grove, East Orange, and Nutley also have no municipal elections this year.
Republicans are not contesting two council seats in North Caldwell, while Democrats did not field a candidate in the open mayor’s race.
Three of Essex County’s five county commissioner districts will feature no Republican candidate on the November ballot, underscoring the county’s overwhelming Democratic advantage. Democrats Wilson Pichardo in the 1st District, A’Dorian Murray-Thomas in the 2nd District, and Medinah Muhammad in the 3rd District are all unopposed in the general election. Republicans are contesting only the more suburban 4th and 5th districts, where the GOP has historically been more competitive, although Democrats remain favored in both.
U.S. Senate
Sen. Cory Booker is heavily favored to carry Essex County once again, reflecting both the county’s overwhelming Democratic lean and his longstanding ties as the former mayor of Newark, New Jersey’s largest city.
Booker carried Essex by 68,000 votes in the 2013 special election against Steve Lonegan, by 77,000 votes against Jeff Bell in 2014, and by nearly 190,000 votes against Rik Mehta in 2020. He faces former Tabernacle Deputy Mayor Justin Murphy this year.
The last Republican Senate nominee, Curtis Bashaw, lost Essex County to now-Sen. Andy Kim by a 72%-25% margin in 2024.
8th Congressional District
Rep. Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City) is seeking a third term representing the 8th district, which includes part of Newark.
Menendez has no Republican opponent, marking the first time since 2008 that a major party failed to nominate a candidate for a New Jersey congressional seat. That year, Rep. Donald Payne Sr. (D-Newark) faced only a Socialist Workers Party candidate.
Local Republican leaders are instead backing Aristotle Eliopoulos, a teachers’ union official and registered Republican who qualified for the ballot as an independent after the GOP nominee failed to submit enough valid signatures.
No Republican has won a Jersey City-based congressional district since 1956.
10th Congressional District
Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-Newark) is seeking another term representing the Newark-based 10th district.
McIver again faces Republican Carmen Bucco, who challenged her in both the 2024 special election and the general election.
Republicans have not won a Newark-based congressional district since 1946.
11th Congressional District
Rep. Analilia Mejia (D-Glen Ridge) is seeking her first full term after winning the April special election to succeed Gov. Mikie Sherrill.
Mejia defeated former Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway, 60%-39%, in April. The two meet again in a November rematch.
The district includes Belleville, Bloomfield, Cedar Grove, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Livingston, Maplewood, Millburn, most of Montclair, North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, South Orange, and West Caldwell.
County Executive
Six-term Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo, now a legendary figure in New Jersey politics, is seeking another four-year term.
Since first winning the office in 2002, DiVincenzo has rarely faced a competitive general election. He inherited a $64 million budget deficit when he took office in 2003 and oversaw the county’s financial turnaround, with Essex now holding Aa1 and AA+ bond ratings from Moody’s and Fitch. He’s made the county’s recreational facilities among the best in the state, and his particular pet project, the Turtle Back Zoo, is a destination for families from other states and an economic development boon for Essex County.
Republicans have not won a countywide race in Essex since James Treffinger’s 1998 re-election as county executive.
DiVincenzo faces Republican Maritza Matthews, who previously ran for county clerk in 2025 and for State Senate in 2023.
County Commissioner At-Large
Three at-large commissioner seats are open following the retirements of Brendan Gill, Patricia Sebold and Romaine Sermons, creating one of the county’s most competitive Democratic primaries in years.
Democrats nominated Wayne Richardson, Christine McGrath, Abdur R. Yasin, and Deborah Engel. Engel captured the final nomination despite lacking the county organization’s endorsement.
Republicans nominated Demetrius Eley, Daniela Ferreira Almeida, Douglas Freeman, and Sahwa DeFrank.
Republicans have not won an at-large commissioner seat since 1971.
County Commissioner – 4th District
Incumbent Leonard Luciano (D) is seeking re-election against Republican Adam Kraemer.
Luciano has served on the county governing body since 2011. Kraemer has been on the ballot before.
Republicans have not won the district since 2005, and Democrats regained it in 2008 when Linda Lordi Cavanaugh ousted incumbent Muriel Shore.
County Commissioner – 5th District
Commissioner Carlos Pomares (D) is seeking another term against Republican Frank Contella.
Pomares has served on the board since 2017. Contella previously ran for State Senate in 2021 and for county commissioner in 2017.
Republicans have not won the district since 2005.
Caldwell
Republican Mayor Garrett Jones is seeking re-election to another term as mayor of Caldwell. Challenging him is Democratic Councilman Ken Jurgensen.
Caldwell has been a highly competitive town for decades. The mayoral post has see-sawed between Republicans Peter Buechner and Irene Gibbons and Democrats George Imperiale and Paul Jemas through the 1980s and 1990s.
In 2018, Democrat John Kelley narrowly unseated Republican Mayor Ann Dassing.
Republicans flipped two council seats in 2021, with Ricardo Alonso and Barbara Buechner, whose late husband, Peter, served as mayor from 1983 to 1986, ousting Rodgers and Council President Cristine Schmidt. This reduced the Democrats’ majority to 4-2
In 2022, Jones was elected mayor, and Republicans flipped two more council seats, giving them a 4-2 majority on the borough council. Jones is a Funeral director and Former business partner of Gov. Richard Codey.
Running alongside Jones this year for two borough council seats are Fire Chief Andrew Pollara and Planning Board member Brian Bambrick.
Jurgensen’s running mates are Jonathan R. Sagalow, a construction manager, and Ricardo Alcorta, an accountant.
Jurgensen currently holds one of the two council seats on the ballot this year, while the second seat is held by retiring Democratic Councilwoman Vivian Rodeffer. In 2023, Rodeffer defeated Republican Matt Giermanski by just four votes, 928-924. Republicans sought a recount, but after a judge denied the request and the appellate court declined to expedite an appeal before Rodeffer was sworn in, they dropped the effort, saying they did not want Caldwell to go through the process of removing an incumbent council member if a recount changed the outcome.
Caldwell remains one of Essex County’s most competitive municipalities. Kamala Harris carried the borough by four points in 2024, while Gov. Mikie Sherrill, who represented the area in Congress, carried Caldwell by 15 points in 2025.
Glen Ridge
Glen Ridge holds partisan elections, but Democrats and Republicans have rarely nominated candidates over the last 113 years. Instead, the Civic Conference Committee (CCC), a group made up of most of the borough’s community organizations — and arguably one of the most durable political machines in the state masquerading as a good government group- meets to endorse an independent slate. They usually win, although from time to time a candidate not endorsed by the CCC has prevailed.
Council President LoriJeane Moody is running unopposed as the endorsed CCC candidate.
Livingston
Democratic incumbents Ketan Bhuptani and Edward Meinhardt, along with party stalwart Stacey Abenstein, are seeking three seats on the Livingston Township Council.
The Democratic primary in June was razor-thin, with Bhuptani prevailing by only 11 votes over Abenstein’s running mate, Laurie Kahn. Bhuptani and Meinhardt also ran together.
Timothy Foley is the lone Republican candidate.
Mayor Shawn Klein did not seek re-election to a fourth term this year and instead ran for Essex County commissioner.
Republicans have not won a Livingston municipal election since 2010. Republicans have not controlled the township council since 1988.
Livingston remains a reliably Democratic community. Kamala Harris carried the township by 18 points in 2024, while Gov. Mikie Sherrill expanded that margin to 20 points in 2025.
Millburn
Republican Mayor Frank Soccomandi and Councilman Ben Stoller are seeking re-election. Democrats Beth Zall and Bill Brazell are challenging them.
The partisan makeup of this year’s November elections was far from guaranteed.
Last November, voters overwhelmingly approved the creation of a charter study commission to examine whether Millburn should transition to nonpartisan municipal elections, passing the referendum by a 65%-35% margin.
Millburn was ultimately widely expected to adopt nonpartisan elections. In a surprise upset, however, the proposal failed by just 59 votes in the June 16th special election, preserving the township’s partisan elections.
Republicans hold a 3-2 majority on the Township Committee, making this election decisive in determining control of the governing body.
Although Millburn is reliably Democratic in federal and statewide contests, local elections have been far more competitive, with voters regularly backing Republican municipal candidates. The township was also one of only a handful of New Jersey municipalities to trend rightward between the 2024 presidential election and the 2025 gubernatorial election.
Kamala Harris carried Millburn by 36 points in 2024, while Gov. Mikie Sherrill carried the township by 26 points in 2025.
Montclair
Montclair Councilwoman Carmel Loughman resigned last year after serving just over one year in office. As a result, a special election will be held in November to fill the remainder of her term.
Councilor-at-Large Bill Harrison, who was appointed to fill Loughman’s seat until the special election, has declined to say whether he intends to run for the seat in November.
According to Montclair Local, several other candidates are also considering bids for the seat. Bob Russo, a former mayor and councilman, has expressed interest in running but said he would enter the race only if Harrison declines. Local attorney and former Board of Education candidate Chrisy Thomas has not ruled out a campaign, while former Planning Board member Martin Schwartz is also considered a potential candidate.
Candidates have until August 20th to file for the seat.
Montclair remains one of New Jersey’s strongest Democratic municipalities. Kamala Harris carried the township by 74 points in 2024, while Gov. Mikie Sherrill carried her hometown by 77 points in 2025.
North Caldwell
North Caldwell will feature one of Essex County’s most unusual election-year arrangements. Republicans did not field candidates for the two borough council seats, while Democrats declined to contest the open mayor’s race being vacated by Josh Raymond. The arrangement clears the way for Democratic council candidates Anthony Floria-Callori and Aimee Luers-Franco to win without opposition, while Republican Councilman Kenneth Tilton is unopposed for mayor. The deal preserves the current 3-3 partisan split on the borough council but shifts the tie-breaking vote from a Democratic mayor to a Republican one, giving the GOP control of the mayor’s office while maintaining an evenly divided governing body.
Roseland
Democratic Councilmen Chris Barti and John Biront are seeking re-election to the borough council.
Challenging them are Republicans Aaron Zablow, an international sales manager, and his wife, Jennifer Zablow, a senior director at a data analytics company. Republicans may switch out at least one of these candidates before the end of the summer.
Roseland has a history of local politics swinging back and forth between Republicans and Democrats over the years and has hosted many grueling contests.
The borough is the hometown of Essex County Executive Joe DiVincenzo, and in 2018, it served as a proxy for intraparty fights between DiVincenzo and former Gov. Richard Codey.
Roseland’s six-member borough council is currently evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, with Democrat James Spango serving as Mayor. Two Republicans ousted two Democratic incumbents in 2024, bringing the council to a 3-3 tie.
Roseland is a competitive borough. Donald Trump carried it by five points in 2024, while Jack Ciattarelli won it by just under two points in 2025.
Verona
On June 22, the Verona Township Council voted to appoint Cory Schor, chairman of the Parks and Recreation Committee, to replace Cynthia Holland, who resigned her seat earlier that month.
Schor’s appointment is temporary, and a special election will be held in November to fill the remainder of Holland’s term.
Schor will run for the seat in November.
There is a chance this will not be the only open seat this year, with incumbent Councilwoman Christina McGrath running for an at-large seat on the county board of commissioners.
McGrath would need to resign on December 31 at the latest to take her seat as a county commissioner the next day. That means the council would appoint a replacement in January 2027 who would serve for nearly one year – until the new council takes office on January 1, 2028.
The two-term councilwoman also has a second option: if she resigns by late August, Verona voters could pick her replacement in the November election. The council could still appoint someone in September, but that person would only serve until the winner of the special election is certified in November; otherwise, the appointee would serve for one year without facing the voters.
McGrath has not said which option she intends to choose.
The filing deadline for the nonpartisan special election for Schor’s seat is August 20th.
Although Verona’s municipal elections are nonpartisan, the township has consistently voted Democratic in partisan elections. Kamala Harris carried Verona by 16 points in 2024, while Gov. Mikie Sherrill won the township by more than 20 points in 2025.
Editor’s note: This story was ypdated on July 19 at 2:19 PM to include that Verona Councilman Cory Schor will run for the seat in the November 2026 special election.
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