1961 New Jersey Senate election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1961 New Jersey Senate elections were held on November 5.
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
November 5, 1961
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 of the 21 seats in the New Jersey State Senate 11 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnout | 73%[1]  2pp) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Results by district Democratic hold Republican hold No election | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
The elections took place alongside the election of Governor Richard J. Hughes. Ten of New Jersey's 21 counties elected Senators; no seats changed hands.
Incumbents not running for re-election
Democratic
All four Democratic Senators up for re-election ran for another term.
Republican
- Walter H. Jones (Bergen) (ran for Governor)
- Wesley Lance (Hunterdon)
Summary of results by county
| County | Incumbent | Party | Elected Senator | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic | Frank S. Farley | Rep | Frank S. Farley | Rep | ||
| Bergen | Walter H. Jones | Rep | Pierce Deamer | Rep | ||
| Burlington | Henry S. Haines | Dem | No election | |||
| Camden | Joseph W. Cowgill | Dem | No election | |||
| Cape May | Charles W. Sandman | Rep | No election | |||
| Cumberland | Robert H. Weber | Dem | Robert H. Weber | Dem | ||
| Essex | Donal C. Fox | Dem | No election | |||
| Gloucester | Thomas F. Connery Jr. | Dem | No election | |||
| Hudson | William F. Kelley Jr. | Dem | William F. Kelly Jr. | Dem | ||
| Hunterdon | Wesley Lance | Rep | Raymond Bowkley | Rep | ||
| Mercer | Sido Ridolfi | Dem | Sido Ridolfi | Dem | ||
| Middlesex | John A. Lynch | Dem | No election | |||
| Monmouth | Richard R. Stout | Rep | No election | |||
| Morris | Thomas J. Hillery | Rep | Thomas J. Hillery | Rep | ||
| Ocean | W. Steelman Mathis | Rep | W. Steelman Mathis | Rep | ||
| Passaic | Anthony J. Grossi | Dem | Anthony J. Grossi | Dem | ||
| Salem | John A. Waddington | Dem | No election | |||
| Somerset | William E. Ozzard | Rep | No election | |||
| Sussex | George B. Harper | Rep | George B. Harper | Rep | ||
| Union | Robert C. Crane | Rep | No election | |||
| Warren | Wayne Dumont | Rep | No election | |||
Close races
Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%:
- Ocean, 5.74%
- Hunterdon, 5.76%
- Cumberland, 9.27%
Atlantic
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Frank S. Farley (incumbent) | 34,949 | 57.93% | ||
| Democratic | John M. Keeley | 25,381 | 42.07% | ||
| Total votes | 60,330 | 100.0% | |||
Bergen
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Pierce H. Deamer Jr. | 160,125 | 55.81% | ||
| Democratic | Fred C. Galda | 124,492 | 43.39% | ||
| Conservative | Irving F. Kent | 1,626 | 0.57% | ||
| Socialist Labor | Nathan Karp | 668 | 0.23% | ||
| Total votes | 286,911 | 100.0% | |||
Cumberland
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert H. Weber (incumbent) | 19,123 | 54.61% | ||
| Republican | Carlton E. Mason | 15,875 | 45.34% | ||
| Socialist Labor | Walter C. Wright | 18 | 0.05% | ||
| Total votes | 35,016 | 100.0% | |||
Hudson
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | William F. Kelley Jr. (incumbent) | 136,987 | 60.71% | ||
| Republican | Norman H. Roth | 86,914 | 38.52% | ||
| Conservative | Clifford R. Ensslin | 1,731 | 0.77% | ||
| Total votes | 225,632 | 100.0% | |||
Hunterdon
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Raymond E. Bowkley | 10,629 | 52.33% | ||
| Democratic | Frank W. Bohren | 9,458 | 46.57% | ||
| Conservative | Robert W. Harris | 223 | 1.10% | ||
| Total votes | 20,310 | 100.0% | |||
Mercer
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sido L. Ridolfi (incumbent) | 57,895 | 64.45% | ||
| Republican | Daniel A. O'Donnell | 31,929 | 35.55% | ||
| Total votes | 89,824 | 100.0% | |||
Remarkably, Senator Ridolfi received the same number of votes he had received in 1957.[3]
Morris
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Thomas J. Hillery (incumbent) | 57,917 | 68.00% | ||
| Democratic | Edward A. Dunbar | 27,259 | 32.00% | ||
| Total votes | 85,176 | 100.0% | |||
Ocean
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | W. Steelman Mathis (incumbent) | 22,010 | 52.87% | ||
| Democratic | Albert J. Cucci | 19,624 | 47.13% | ||
| Total votes | 41,634 | 100.0% | |||
Passaic
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Anthony J. Grossi (incumbent) | 72,676 | 55.13% | ||
| Republican | Paul G. DeMuro | 58,080 | 44.06% | ||
| Conservative | Charles R. Checkley | 804 | 0.61% | ||
| Socialist | Harry Santhouse | 255 | 0.19% | ||
| Total votes | 131,815 | 100.0% | |||
Sussex
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | George B. Harper (incumbent) | 10,670 | 54.95% | ||
| Democratic | Frank A. Dolan | 8,749 | 45.05% | ||
| Total votes | 19,419 | 100.0% | |||