1944 United States Senate special election in New Jersey
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The 1944 United States Senate special election in New Jersey was held on November 7, 1944.
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November 7, 1944
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| Turnout | 83%[1] ( 3pp) | ||||||||||||||||
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 County results Smith: 50–60% 60–70% Wene: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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The election was held to fill the unexpired term of W. Warren Barbour, who died in November 1943. H. Alexander Smith was elected to the open seat over Democratic U.S. Representative Elmer H. Wene.
The incumbent Democratic appointee, Arthur Walsh, did not run.
Background
Incumbent Senator W. Warren Barbour was elected in 1940 to a six-year term set to expire in 1947. He died on November 22, 1943, of a cerebral hemorrhage.
On November 26, Governor of New Jersey Charles Edison appointed Arthur Walsh to fill the vacant seat until a successor could be duly elected.[2]
A special election to complete the remainder of Barbour's unexpired term was scheduled for November 7, 1944, concurrent with the general election for presidential electors and U.S. House of Representatives.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Elmer H. Wene, U.S. Representative from Vineland
Declined
- Arthur Walsh, interim Senator
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Elmer H. Wene | 151,126 | 100.0% | |
| Total votes | 151,126 | 100.0% | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- H. Alexander Smith, Princeton attorney and member of the Republican National Committee
- Andrew O. Wittreich, Tenafly resident
Withdrew
- Guy Gabrielson, former Speaker of the General Assembly and assemblyman from East Orange[4]
Campaign
Gabrielson withdrew from the race after party leadership coalesced behind Smith. As consolation, Gabrielson was elected to succeed Smith as Republican National Committeeman. In 1949, he was elected chair of the Republican National Committee.[4]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | H. Alexander Smith | 187,190 | 82.55% | |
| Republican | Andrew O. Wittreich | 39,576 | 17.45% | |
| Total votes | 226,766 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- John C. Butterworth (Socialist Labor)
- George W. Ridout (Prohibition), Methodist minister
- Morris Riger (Socialist)
- H. Alexander Smith (Republican), Princeton attorney and member of the Republican National Committee
- Elmer H. Wene (Democratic), U.S. Representative from Vineland
Endorsements
- Individuals
- Russell Davenport, foreign affairs advisor to Wendell Willkie
- Individuals
- Henry W. Jeffers, dairy farmer and former chair of the New Jersey Republican State Committee (Republican)
Campaign
Smith reported $15,116 (approximately $213,358 in 2024 dollars) in campaign spending, a considerable sum for the time.[6]
Results
Wene conceded defeat on November 9, after overseas military ballots were counted. Wene received a substantial majority of the military ballots, but it was not sufficient to overcome Smith's margin in the statewide vote.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Howard Alexander Smith | 940,051 | 50.44% | |
| Democratic | Elmer H. Wene | 910,096 | 48.84% | |
| Prohibition | George W. Ridout | 9,873 | 0.53% | |
| Socialist Labor | John C. Butterworth | 1,997 | 0.11% | |
| Socialist | Morris Riger | 1,593 | 0.09% | |
| Majority | 29,955 | 1.60% | ||
| Turnout | 1,863,610 | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||
