Democrats Susan Lockwood and Kathleen Klink won two seats on the Delaware Township Committee, breaking the Republican Party’s 3-2 majority and giving Democrats control of the Hunterdon County municipality.
Lockwood won re-election, while Klink captured the seat being vacated by retiring Republican Committeeman Charles Hernan. Republicans Mark Wright and Nathaniel Miller, both members of the township Planning Board, lost in their bids to retain the open GOP seat and unseat Lockwood.
Lockwood received 1,446 votes; Klink received 1,441 votes; Wright received 1,097 votes; Miller received 1,063 votes.
The victories give Democrats a 3-2 majority on the five-member committee, a significant shift in a township that has long leaned Republican but has become increasingly competitive in recent statewide elections.
Klink, a teacher, was seeking her first term on the committee. Lockwood, the incumbent Democrat, was defending her seat as Republicans sought to maintain their majority and expand it to four seats.
Delaware Township has been an unusual bellwether in recent presidential elections. Donald Trump carried the township by roughly one percentage point in 2020, before Democrat Kamala Harris narrowly won it in 2024 by less than half a percentage point. The shift made Delaware one of just two New Jersey municipalities to back Trump in 2020 and Harris four years later.
The township also shifted toward Democrats in 2025. Gov. Mikie Sherrill carried Delaware Township by about two percentage points, four years after Republican Jack Ciattarelli won it by 12 points over Gov. Phil Murphy.