1940 New Jersey gubernatorial election

1940 New Jersey gubernatorial election

←  1937 November 5, 1940 1943  →
Turnout	85.52% [1] ( 15.32%)
Nominee Charles Edison Robert C. Hendrickson Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 984,407 920,512 Percentage 51.4% 48.0%
County results Edison:      50–60%     60–70% Hendrickson:      40–50%     50–60%     60–70%
Governor before election A. Harry Moore Democratic Elected Governor Charles Edison Democratic

The 1940 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1940. Democratic nominee Charles Edison defeated Republican nominee Robert C. Hendrickson with 51.38% of the vote.

Primary elections

Primary elections were held on May 21, 1940. ^[2]

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Charles Edison, former United States Secretary of the Navy

Results

Democratic primary results ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Charles Edison	257,008	100.00
Total votes			257,008	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Robert C. Hendrickson, State Senator for Gloucester County from Woodbury
• Harold G. Hoffman, former Governor

Results

Republican Party primary results ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert C. Hendrickson	283,942	53.46
	Republican	Harold G. Hoffman	247,221	46.54
Total votes			531,163	100.00

General election

Candidates

Major party candidates

• Charles Edison, Democratic
• Robert C. Hendrickson, Republican

Other candidates

• Marion Douglas, Socialist Party of America
• Manuel Cantor, Communist Party USA
• John C. Butterworth, Socialist Labor Party of America
• Elmo L. Bateman, Prohibition Party

Results

New Jersey gubernatorial election, 1940 ^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Charles Edison	984,407	51.38%
	Republican	Robert C. Hendrickson	920,512	48.04%
	Socialist	Marion Douglas	7,607	0.40%
	Communist	Manuel Cantor	1,544	0.08%
	Socialist Labor	John C. Butterworth	1,411	0.07%
	Prohibition	Elmo L. Bateman	584	0.03%
Majority
Turnout
	Democratic hold		Swing

References

1. "General Election Data - 1924 to 2022" (PDF). NJ.gov.
2. "Results of the Primary Election Held May 21st, 1940" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. 1940. Retrieved June 12, 2025.
3. "Votes Cast for the Office of Governor of the State of New Jersey" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. 1940. Retrieved August 31, 2015.