Essex County Picks Murphy Over Guadagno: Election 2017

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Although the race was much closer on a state level, Essex County residents overwhelmingly chose Phil Murphy over Kim Guadagno for the next governor of New Jersey on Tuesday.

In Essex County, with 96 percent of districts reported, Murphy, a former Goldman Sachs executive running as a Democrat, and his running mate, Assemblywoman Sheila Oliver, were at 121,068 votes (about 79.48%), the county clerk’s office stated Wednesday.

Guadagno, the Republican lieutenant governor under Chris Christie, and her running mate, Woodcliff Lake Mayor Carlos Rendo, were at 28,690 votes (about 18.83%) as of Wednesday, the Essex County Clerk’s Office reported.

On a state level, the race was much closer. On Tuesday night, Murphy’s vote total was projected at 1,124,168 (about 55.5%), and Guadagno was at 858,624 votes (about 42.4 percent).

• See related article: NJ Governor Election, Democrat Phil Murphy Wins

Third party and independent governor candidates collected about 1.68 percent of the total in Essex County, the clerk’s office reported.

• Gina Genovese (Independent) – 931 votes (0.61%)
• Seth Kaper-Dale (Green Party) – 692 votes (0.45%)
• Pete Rohrman (Libertarian Party) – 374 votes (0.25%)
• Matt Riccardi (Constitution Party) – 274 votes (0.18%)
• Vincent Ross (Independent) – 159 votes (0.10%)
• Write-In – 136 votes (0.09%)

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