NEW JERSEY 101.5

 New Jersey has returned Chris Christie to Trenton for a second term by an overwhelming margin of victory over challenger Barbara Buono.

Governor Christie delivers his victory speech at Convention Hall in Asbury Park
Governor Christie delivers his victory speech at Convention Hall in Asbury Park (NJ TV)
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Convention Hall stage
Convention Hall stage (Twitter)
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10:33 p.m. - Christie said his late mother would not let him bask for long in the glow of his win. He says she would urge him to "get back to work, the job's not done" and then left the stage to strains of Bon Jovi's "Who Says You Can't Go Home/"

10:27 p.m. - Christie vows,“My pledge to you tonight is that I will govern with the spirit of Sandy" and promises to make sure those affected by the Superstorm have a full recovery.

10:21 p.m. - Christie took on national politics. "I know if we can do this in Trenton, N.J., maybe the folks in Washington, D.C., should tune in their TVs to see how it's done," he said. "We still fight, we still yell, but when we fight, we fight for those things that really matter in peoples' lives. And while we may not always agree, we show up."

10:16 p.m. - His family on the stage with him, Governor Chris Christie told the Convention Hall audience he is "proud to be your governor." Standing behind a podium with the iconic "Asbury Park" logo, Christie said, "Thank you, New Jersey, for making me the luckiest guy in the world."

10:05 p.m. - Republican Don Guardian upsets longtime incumbent Atlantic City mayor Lorenzo Langford (D). He has been mayor since 1990.

9:44 p.m. - Public question #2 that constitutionally mandates yearly increases in the minimum wage has passed according to the AP.

9:34 p.m.- Associated Press has called the following legislative races around the state.

Distirct 2:Democratic incumbent Jim Whelan
District 4 Democratic incumbent Sen. Fred Madden
District 5 Democratic incumbent Sen. Donald Norcross
District 6 Democratic incumbent Sen. Jim Beach
District 9 Republican incumbent Sen. Chris Connors
District 10 Republican incumbent Sen. Jim Holzapfel
District 27 Democratic incumbent Sen. Richard Codey
District 28 Democratic incumbent Sen. Ron Rice
District 29 Democratic incumbent Sen. Teresa Ruiz

Also declared winners: Senators Joe Kyrillos, Ron Rice and Jennifer Beck and Steve Sweeney.

Convention Hall in Asbury Park ready for Christie's victory speech
Convention Hall in Asbury Park ready for Christie's victory speech (Twitter)
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9:29 p.m. - Latest results from AP:

Governor: 306 of 6,345 precincts - 5 percent

x-Chris Christie, GOP (i) 91,648 - 61 percent
Barbara Buono, Dem 56,003 - 37 percent
Kenneth Kaplan, Ind 841 - 1 percent
Steven Welzer, Ind 604 - 0 percent
William Araujo, Ind 222 - 0 percent
Diane Sare, Ind 217 - 0 percent
Hank Schroeder, Ind 152 - 0 percent
Jeff Boss, Ind 138 - 0 percent

Question 2-Minimum Wage Increase Set Minimum Wage

133 of 6,345 precincts - 2 percent

Yes, 41,438 - 74 percent
No, 14,440 - 26 percent

 

John Ducey claims victory in Brick's Mayoral race
John Ducey claims victory in Brick's Mayoral race (Jason Allentoff, Townsquare Media NJ)
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9:22 p.m. - Two Democrats offered support for Barbara Buono's candidacy for governor. "We're grateful to Barbara for taking on this fight," she told the Star-Ledger."There was nothing that Barbara could have done differently."  Rush Holt, meanwhile, said people are "mystified" by Christie's appeal and expects it to be short-lived.

 

 

9:17 p.m. - The New York Times has called the New York mayoral race for Democrat Bill De Blasio

9:14 p.m. - Townsquare Media's Jason Allentoff reports John Ducey has won the heated race for mayor in Brick.

9:11 p.m. - Kevin McArdle at Christie election night headquarters says Christie will speak around 10 p.m. at Convention Hall in Asbury Park preceded by remarks from his children.

9:05 p.m. - With Lt. Governor candidate Milly Silva and her husband at her side, Buono encouraged supporters to not be glum. "We knew this journey would not be easy." She addressed the lack of support from Democrats in the race that she trailed in from the start. "We took on the bosses and political machines that have controlled New Jersey for far too long," says Buono.

I'll continue to defend the downtrodden...I will continue to fight for them. That's who I am. And that's what I do," said Buono to cheers.

Barbara Buono concession speech
Barbara Buono concession speech (NJ TV)
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8:45 p.m. - Buono in her concession speech said, "I know we have our differences, but when it comes down to it, we're just two parents who want to see the best for our children's future."

 

 

 


The Associated Press called the race for Christie just after 8 p.m.

Early vote counts give Christie a 70%-27% with just over 3,000 votes counted.

It appears that the minimum wage public question will win as well.

The candidates for governor cast their ballots this morning Governor Chris Christie will await results in Asbury Park at Convention Hall, the home of his musical idol Bruce Springsteen. Democrat challenger Barbara Buono will be in her hometown of Metuchen at Novita Bistro and Lounge.

The election is also a referendum on Christie's popularity in terms of a possible future run for the White House.  The Washington Post reports in exit polling Hillary Clinton has a slight lead over Christie.

Preliminary results of an exit poll show seven in 10 New Jersey voters say the state's economy is either worse today or about the same as it was four years ago. Nearly two-thirds of voters approve of the way Gov. Chris Christie is handling the economy.

Besides the two public questions dealing with an increase in the minimum wage and funding for senior groups there are key legislative races in districts 1,2,14,16, 18 and 38.


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