New Jersey shifts red: Trump flips key counties as Garden State reflects changing political landscape
NEW JERSEY - New Jersey has been a blue stronghold for decades, but the 2024 election results showed that that may all be changing.
Vice President Kamala Harris won New Jersey with a narrower margin than anticipated, capturing 51.5% of the vote to Donald Trump’s 46.5%. However, Trump managed to flip three counties, including Passaic, a longtime Democratic stronghold.
"The margin in 2020 in New Jersey was 17-ish points. This year it's 5-ish. It's hard not to be sober about that and reflect," said Governor Phil Murphy.
Political analysts were taken aback by the outcome in Passaic County, an area that has historically been part of the Democratic majority.
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"For a rockbed Democratic County that contains the city of Paterson, that has been a historic part of the Democratic majority statewide for decades, this was a shock of shocks to see Passaic County go red," said Micah Rasmussen, a political science professor at Rider University.
Passaic County, which has one of the largest Latino populations in New Jersey and one of the largest Muslim communities outside Michigan, saw strong turnout for Trump. Many local voters pointed to a desire for change as the driving factor.
"I was surprised it wasn't more red," said one resident.
Despite the red shift, Democratic Senator-elect Andy Kim achieved a notable victory in Passaic, defeating his Republican opponent Curtis Bashaw by about 3,000 votes. Kim’s success in the county—alongside Trump’s gains—suggests a split-ticket trend in New Jersey, with voters showing flexibility in their choices for statewide and federal offices.
"Andy Kim defied the performance both above him, for Trump, and below him for the House races," said Rasmussen. "He is becoming a very popular statewide official, he is seen as a political reformer, he is seen as someone who has taken on the bosses and beaten them."