New Jersey Reacts to Trump Win

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Gage Skidmore.

After one of the most contentious battles for the presidency that the nation has ever seen, Donald J. Trump, the Republican candidate, has been elected president of the United States, defeating the Democrat, Hillary Clinton. In New Jersey, where Clinton prevailed, many of the state’s most vocal politicians seemed stunned into silence.

As expected, Clinton won the Garden State’s 12 electoral votes, with 54.8 percent of New Jerseyans opting for the former Secretary of State. That’s short of the 58 percent that supported Barack Obama four years ago. Elsewhere on the ballot, New Jersey voters approved a constitutional amendment to dedicate gas-tax revenue to transportation projects, but soundly defeated a referendum to expand casino gambling to Northern Jersey.

All 12 New Jersey seats in the U.S. House of Representatives were up for grabs. In the most competitive race, Democrat Joshua Gottheimer defeated ultra-conservative Republican incumbent Scott Garrett in the 5^th District, gaining 51 percent of the vote. Elsewhere, the status quo ruled the day, with incumbents holding their seats. The winners: Democrats Bonnie Watson Coleman, Donald Norcross, Frank Pallone, Bill Pascrell, Donald Payne Jr. and Albio Sires; and Republicans Rodney Frelinghuysen, Leonard Lance, Frank LoBiondo, Tom MacArthur and Chris Smith.

While New Jersey is typically a blue state and voted that way yesterday, reactions from its citizens appeared to be mixed and many of its politicians appeared to be mum—perhaps due to shock—with no statements on Twitter from senators Bob Menendez, Cory Booker, state Senate President Steven Sweeney or even Republican Governor Chris Christie.

The climate on Twitter this morning is rife with excited and antagonistic speech. The top trending hashtags in the New York area include #NotMyPresident #themorningafter #President Trump #StillWithHer and President-elect Trump. Nationwide trends include #NotMyPresident #themorningafter #StillWithHer, and the topics “President-elect Trump” and “First Lady” while worldwide trends include #TrumpPresident and #RIPAmerica.