In Tuesday, Nov. 3's election, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (59.7%) and New Jersey U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (62.3%) won re-election. In New Jersey's 7th Congressional District, Democrat Rebecca Bennett flipped a Republican seat, and Democrats have clinched 29 of the 38 U.S. House seats across the two states. Five races, in NY-17, NY-1, NY-2, NY-21 and NJ-2, are still counting mail-in ballots.
Democrats won big in both New York and New Jersey in Tuesday, Nov. 3's election. In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul won re-election, and Attorney General Letitia James and Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli also held their seats. In New Jersey, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker won a fourth term, and in the 7th District, Democrat Rebecca Bennett flipped a seat held by Republicans. Of the 38 U.S. House seats in the two states, Democrats have clinched 29 and Republicans 4, while five races await mail-in ballot counts. The figures below are unofficial results as of the afternoon of Wednesday, Nov. 4.
New York: Governor, Attorney General and Comptroller
The Associated Press projected Hochul's victory at 9 p.m., right after polls closed. With about 92% of votes counted, Hochul had received more than 3.489 million votes (59.7%), leading Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (more than 2.34 million votes, 40.1%) by nearly 20 percentage points. Hochul beat Lee Zeldin by 6 percentage points in 2022; this time the margin widened considerably.
In the attorney general's race, incumbent Letitia James (D) won with 60.2%, defeating Republican Sarita Komatireddy (39.8%). In the comptroller's race, incumbent Thomas DiNapoli (D) beat Republican Joseph Hernandez (35.4%) with 64.5%. All three statewide offices were won by Democratic incumbents.
New York by Region
New York City overwhelmingly backed Hochul: the Bronx 83.2%, Manhattan 82.2%, Brooklyn 79.4% and Queens 72.0%. Among the five boroughs, only Staten Island went to Blakeman, with 58.4%. Hochul also won Westchester (70.3%), Rockland (68.3%) and upstate urban areas including Albany, Rochester, Syracuse and Ithaca.
Long Island was a close contest. In Nassau County, where Blakeman serves as county executive, the vote was nearly even, with Hochul at 50.2% and Blakeman at 49.7%, and Suffolk County was 50.3% to 49.6%. Blakeman led by wide margins in most rural counties in the north and west.
New York U.S. House: Democrats Clinch 19 Seats, 4 Races Undecided
Of New York's 26 U.S. House seats, Democrats have clinched 19 and Republicans 3. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D, 55.0%) in Long Island's 3rd District and Rep. Laura Gillen (D, 56.6%) in the 4th District were declared winners on the afternoon of Wednesday, the 4th. In the 6th District, which includes Flushing, Rep. Grace Meng (D) was re-elected with 68.6%, and in the upstate 19th District, Rep. Josh Riley (D) won with 57.2%.
Four races remain undecided. In the Hudson Valley's 17th District, with about 60% of votes counted, Democrat Kate Conley leads Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, 52.2% to 47.7%. In Long Island's 1st District, Rep. Nick LaLota (R) has 51.1% and Christopher Gallant (D) has 48.9%, and in the 2nd District, Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R) has 51.1% and Patrick Halpin (D) has 48.8%, with Republican incumbents narrowly ahead (99% counted in both). In the northern 21st District, where the incumbent did not run, the count is finished, with Republican Anthony Constantino at 50.9% and Democrat Blake Gendebien at 48.8%.
New York State Legislature: Democrats Keep Majority
In the 63-seat New York State Senate, Democrats have clinched 42 seats and Republicans 13, with 8 undecided. A majority is 32 seats, so the Democratic majority is already secured. Among the undecided races, Democratic challengers lead in Long Island's 1st District (Democrat Christopher Murray 51.7%, Republican incumbent Anthony Palumbo 48.3%), the 9th District (Democrat Lisa Vider 51.2%, Republican incumbent Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick 48.7%) and the Capital Region's 44th District (Democrat Sarah Rogerson 52.1%, Republican incumbent James Tedisco 47.8%). In the 7th District, which includes Great Neck and Manhasset, Republican Jake Blumencranz has 51.8% and Democrat Laurie Lankman has 48.0%.
In the 150-seat State Assembly, Democrats have clinched 101 seats and Republicans 36, with 13 undecided.
New Jersey: Booker Wins Fourth Term, NJ-7 Seat Flipped
In New Jersey's U.S. Senate race, Sen. Cory Booker (D) won a fourth term, receiving 62.3% (more than 1.754 million votes) with about 92% counted and finishing well ahead of Republican Justin Murphy (35.1%). Booker led in northern counties such as Bergen (60.9%), Hudson (77.2%) and Essex (79.3%) and in urban areas such as Camden and Mercer, while Murphy led in Ocean, Cape May, Sussex, Salem and Warren counties.
Of the 12 U.S. House seats, Democrats have clinched 10 and Republicans 1. In the closely watched 7th District, with about 94% counted, Democrat Rebecca Bennett defeated Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R, 41.4%) with 57.1%, taking back a seat Republicans have held since 2022. In Bergen County's 5th District, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D) was re-elected with 63.5%.
In the only undecided race, southern New Jersey's 2nd District, with about 95% counted, Democrat Zach Mulock leads Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R, 48.2%) with 50.8%, ahead by about 7,000 votes. Depending on the result, New Jersey's U.S. House delegation could be 11 Democrats to 1 Republican.
In the Bergen County executive race, incumbent James Tedesco III (D) leads Republican Todd Hennessey (more than 107,000 votes) with more than 195,000 votes and is likely to win a fourth term (unofficial count). New Jersey did not hold state legislative elections this year.
Korean American Communities
In the Palisades Park, New Jersey, mayoral race, incumbent Mayor Paul Kim (D) led Republican Stephanie Jang by a wide margin, 2,175 votes to 967. In the Fort Lee council race, Democrats Paul Yoon and Brian Drumgool received more than twice as many votes as their opponents (unofficial Bergen County count). In New York, Assemblyman Ron Kim (District 40) and state Sen. John Liu (District 16) of Flushing ran unopposed and were re-elected, and state Sen. Toby Stavisky (65.6%) and Assemblyman Edward Braunstein (61.4%) of the Bayside area were also re-elected. Details are in our article on election results in Korean American communities.
National Picture and What's Next
Nationally, according to NBC News, Democrats have clinched 54 U.S. Senate seats and 231 U.S. House seats, retaking the majority in both chambers. The five undecided races in New York and New Jersey (NY-17, NY-1, NY-2, NY-21 and NJ-2) will not be settled until mail-in and absentee ballots are counted. Close races could also go to recounts, so final results could take days or weeks. New Jersey's official results will be certified on Thursday, Dec. 3. NY&NJ will report results as they come in.