2003 New Jersey Senate election

2003 New Jersey Senate elections

←  2001 November 4, 2003 2007  →
All 40 seats in the New Jersey State Senate 21 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Richard Codey John O. Bennett (lost re-election) Party Democratic Republican Leader's seat 27th 12th Last election 20 20 Seats won 22 18 Seat change 2 2
Results by district      Democratic hold     Democratic gain      Republican hold
Senate President before election John O. Bennett and Richard Codey Elected Senate President Richard Codey Democratic

The 2003 New Jersey Senate election was held on November 4.

The election took midway through Jim McGreevey's term as Governor of New Jersey. The election ended two years of split control in favor of the Democratic Party, which regained a majority for the first time since 1991. Incumbent Senate co-president John O. Bennett was unseated for re-election by Ellen Karcher in the 12th district, and Democrats also flipped a seat in the 4th.

The Democrats continue to hold the majority in the Senate as of 2025.

Contents Incumbents not running • Summary of results By District: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 35 • 36 • 37 • 38 • 39 • 40

Incumbents not running for re-election

Democratic

• Joseph Suliga (District 22) (withdrew to enter rehabilitation for alcoholism)

Republican

• James Cafiero (District 1)

Additionally, Senators John J. Matheussen, Richard Bagger, and Garry Furnari, who were elected in 2001, resigned before their terms were completed. The interim appointees for each of their seats ran as incumbents.

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report [1]	Tossup	October 4, 2002

Summary of results by State Senate district

District	Incumbent	Party		Elected Senator	Party
1st Legislative District	James Cafiero		Rep	Nicholas Asselta		Rep
2nd Legislative District	William Gormley		Rep	William Gormley		Rep
3rd Legislative District	Steve Sweeney		Dem	Steve Sweeney		Dem
4th Legislative District	George Geist [a]		Rep	Fred Madden		Dem
5th Legislative District	Wayne R. Bryant		Dem	Wayne R. Bryant		Dem
6th Legislative District	John Adler		Dem	John Adler		Dem
7th Legislative District	Diane Allen		Rep	Diane Allen		Rep
8th Legislative District	Martha W. Bark		Rep	Martha W. Bark		Rep
9th Legislative District	Leonard T. Connors		Rep	Leonard T. Connors		Rep
10th Legislative District	Andrew R. Ciesla		Rep	Andrew R. Ciesla		Rep
11th Legislative District	Joseph A. Palaia		Rep	Joseph A. Palaia		Rep
12th Legislative District	John O. Bennett		Rep	Ellen Karcher		Dem
13th Legislative District	Joe Kyrillos		Rep	Joe Kyrillos		Rep
14th Legislative District	Peter Inverso		Rep	Peter Inverso		Rep
15th Legislative District	Shirley Turner		Dem	Shirley Turner		Dem
16th Legislative District	Walter J. Kavanaugh		Rep	Walter J. Kavanaugh		Rep
17th Legislative District	Bob Smith		Dem	Bob Smith		Dem
18th Legislative District	Barbara Buono		Dem	Barbara Buono		Dem
19th Legislative District	Joe Vitale		Dem	Joe Vitale		Dem
20th Legislative District	Raymond Lesniak		Dem	Raymond Lesniak		Dem
21st Legislative District	Tom Kean Jr. [b]		Rep	Tom Kean Jr.		Rep
22nd Legislative District	Joseph Suliga		Dem	Nicholas Scutari		Dem
23rd Legislative District	Leonard Lance		Rep	Leonard Lance		Rep
24th Legislative District	Robert Littell		Rep	Robert Littell		Rep
25th Legislative District	Anthony Bucco		Rep	Anthony Bucco		Rep
26th Legislative District	Robert Martin		Rep	Robert Martin		Rep
27th Legislative District	Richard Codey		Dem	Richard Codey		Dem
28th Legislative District	Ronald Rice		Dem	Ronald Rice		Dem
29th Legislative District	Sharpe James		Dem	Sharpe James		Dem
30th Legislative District	Robert W. Singer		Rep	Robert W. Singer		Rep
31st Legislative District	L. Harvey Smith [c]		Dem	Glenn Cunningham		Dem
32nd Legislative District	Nicholas Sacco		Dem	Nicholas Sacco		Dem
33rd Legislative District	Bernard Kenny		Dem	Bernard Kenny		Dem
34th Legislative District	Nia Gill		Dem	Nia Gill		Dem
35th Legislative District	John Girgenti		Dem	John Girgenti		Dem
36th Legislative District	Paul Sarlo [d]		Dem	Paul Sarlo		Dem
37th Legislative District	Byron Baer		Dem	Byron Baer		Dem
38th Legislative District	Joseph Coniglio		Dem	Joseph Coniglio		Dem
39th Legislative District	Gerald Cardinale		Rep	Gerald Cardinale		Rep
40th Legislative District	Henry McNamara		Rep	Henry McNamara		Rep

1. Geist was appointed to the seat after Senator John Matheussen resigned to become head of the Delaware River Port Authority.
2. Kean was appointed to complete the unexpired term of Senator Richard Bagger, who resigned to pursue private business interests.
3. Smith was appointed to the seat after the resignation of Senator Joseph Charles on August 13.
4. Sarlo was appointed to the seat after Senator Garry Furnari resigned to join the New Jersey Superior Court.

Close races

1. District 4, 0.16% gain
2. District 3, 8.10%
3. District 3, 9.07%
4. District 12, 9.92% gain

District 1

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Nicholas Asselta	31,112	80.9%	30.5
	HealthCare For All	Steven Fenichel	5,986	15.6%	N/A
	English Language Only	George Cecola	1,341	3.5%	N/A
Total votes			38,439	100.0%

District 2

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	William Gormley (incumbent)	24,680	60.0%	26.5
	Democratic	Tom Swift	15,281	37.1%	N/A
	Green	Robert "Gabe" Gabrielsky	1,174	2.9%	10.6
Total votes			41,135	100.0%

District 3

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Stephen M. Sweeney (incumbent)	29,051	54.0%	2.5
	Republican	Phillip S. Rhudy	24,698	46.0%	2.5
Total votes			53,749	100.0%

District 4

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Fred H. Madden	20,752	50.08%	8.3
	Republican	George Geist (incumbent)	20,689	49.92%	8.3
Total votes			41,441	100.0%

District 5

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Wayne R. Bryant (incumbent)	21,442	64.9%	4.4
	Republican	Ali Sloan El	11,589	35.1%	4.4
Total votes			33,031	100.0%

District 6

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John Adler (incumbent)	29,033	61.0%	5.7
	Republican	Joseph A. Adolf	18,534	39.0%	5.7
Total votes			47,567	100.0%

District 7

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Diane Allen (incumbent)	26,341	60.3	6.2
	Democratic	Diane F. Gabriel	17,331	39.7	6.2
Total votes			'43,672'	'100.0'

District 8

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Martha W. Bark (incumbent)	28,047	66.9%	6.2
	Democratic	Thomas J. Price	13,865	33.1%	6.2
Total votes			'41,912'	'100.0'

District 9

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard T. Connors (incumbent)	36,539	65.6%	6.9
	Democratic	Aviva Twersky-Glasner	18,995	34.4%	6.1
Total votes			'55,534'	'100.0'

District 10

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Andrew R. Ciesla (incumbent)	29,752	65.1%	8.3
	Democratic	James M. Blaney	15,960	34.9%	8.3
Total votes			'45,712'	'100.0'

District 11

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Joseph A. Palaia	23,643	58.7%	3.3
	Democratic	Paul X. Escandon	11,045	27.4%	10.6
	Green	Brian Unger	4,759	11.8%	N/A
	Libertarian	Emerson Ellett	831	2.1%	N/A
Total votes			'40,278'	'100.0'

District 12

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Ellen Karcher	24,174	52.4%	11.2
	Republican	John O. Bennett (incumbent)	19,600	42.5%	16.3
	Green	Earl Gray	2,334	5.1%	N/A
Total votes			46,108	100.0%

District 13

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Joe Kyrillos (incumbent)	23,459	54.1%	10.3
	Democratic	William E. Flynn	17,828	41.1%	5.5
	Green	Greg Orr	1,419	3.3%	N/A
	Conservative	Mac Dara Lyden	649	1.5%	N/A
Total votes			43,355	100.0%

District 14

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Peter Inverso (incumbent)	29,499	58.6%	6.5
	Democratic	Anthony J. "Skip" Cimino	19,613	38.9%	9.0
	Libertarian	Ray Cragle	1,249	2.5%	N/A
Total votes			50,361	100.0%

District 15

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Shirley Turner (incumbent)	24,053	67.4%	1.7
	Republican	Calvin O. Iszard	11,638	32.6%	2.9
Total votes			35,691	100.0%

District 16

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Walter J. Kavanaugh (incumbent)	28,843	100.0%	33.4
Total votes			28,843	100.0%

District 17

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Bob Smith (incumbent)	17,438	61.0%	7.9
	Republican	Jeffrey M. Orbach	11,168	39.0%	7.9
Total votes			28,606	100.0%

District 18

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Barbara Buono (incumbent)	18,561	58.5%	6.5
	Republican	Richard F. Plechner	13,175	41.5%	6.5
Total votes			31,736	100.0%

District 19

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Joe Vitale (incumbent)	22,643	65.5%	11.9
	Republican	Paul Danielczyk	11,949	34.5%	11.9
Total votes			34,592	100.0%

District 20

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Raymond Lesniak (incumbent)	12,361	62.2%	17.8
	Republican	Daniel M. Nozza	7,217	36.3%	16.3
	Restore NJ State	Shawn P. Gianella	298	1.5%	N/A
Total votes			19,876	100.0%

District 21

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Tom Kean Jr. (incumbent)	32,058	67.4%	8.8
	Democratic	Francis D. McIntyre	14,470	30.4%	11.0
	Green	Teresa Migliore-DiMatteo	1,055	2.2%	N/A
Total votes			47,583	100.0%

District 22

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Nicholas Scutari	16,658	55.0%	4.1
	Republican	Martin Marks	13,609	45.0%	4.1
Total votes			30,267	100.0%

District 23

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	29,775	68.0%	1.3
	Democratic	Frederick P. Cook	13,994	32.0%	1.3
Total votes			43,769	100.0%

District 24

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Robert E. Littell (incumbent)	23,106	68.1%	6.3
	Democratic	James D. Morrison	10,810	31.9%	6.3
Total votes			33,916	100.0%

District 25

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Anthony R. Bucco (incumbent)	22,163	55.1%	10.4
	Democratic	Blair B. MacInnes	18,060	44.9%	10.4
Total votes			40,223	100.0%

District 26

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Robert J. Martin (incumbent)	21,733	66.0	0.1
	Democratic	Daniel L. Grant	11,216	34.0	0.1
Total votes			'32,949'	'100.0'

District 27

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Richard Codey (incumbent)	17,220	65.8%	1.1
	Republican	Bobbi Joan Bennett	8,958	34.2%	1.4
Total votes			26,178	100.0%

District 28

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Ronald Rice (incumbent)	10,068	73.4%	4.0
	Republican	Jean LaMothe	3,137	22.9%	6.7
	Green	Beresford Jones	518	3.8%	N/A
Total votes			13,723	100.0%

District 29

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Sharpe James (incumbent)	7,919	82.7%	17.3
	Green	Toy-Ling Washington	1,187	12.4%	N/A
	Socialist Workers	Abigail D. Tilsner	470	4.9%	N/A
Total votes			9,576	100.0%

District 30

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Robert W. Singer (incumbent)	24,637	62.6%	0.9
	Democratic	Steven Morlino	14,713	37.4%	0.9
Total votes			39,350	100.0

District 31

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Glenn Cunningham	15,838	79.0%	4.9
	Republican	Carmen E. Mendiola	3,214	16.0%	9.9
	Green	Eric Olsen	1,005	5.0%	N/A
Total votes			20,057	100.0%

District 32

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Nicholas Sacco (incumbent)	17,269	76.9%	7.9
	Republican	Louis S. Lusquinos Jr	4,085	18.2%	11.2
	Time For Change	Denis Jaslow	928	4.1%	N/A
	Eliminate Primary Elections	Louis Vernotico	160	0.7%	0.2
Total votes			22,442	100.0%

District 33

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Bernard Kenny (incumbent)	20,809	80.9%	5.6
	Republican	Rafael Fraguela	4,904	19.1%	5.6
Total votes			25,713	100.0%

District 34

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Nia Gill (incumbent)	19,161	69.7%	4.8
	Republican	Frank C. Fusco	8,325	30.3%	4.1
Total votes			27,486	100.0%

District 35

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John Girgenti (incumbent)	16,243	68.6%	31.4
	Republican	David R. Troast	7,434	31.4%	N/A
Total votes			23,677	100.0%

District 36

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Paul Sarlo (incumbent)	18,035	53.3%	2.5
	Republican	John V. Kelly	14,964	44.2%	3.6
	Tax the Rich	Richard DelaRosa	496	1.5%	N/A
	Real Pro-Choice	Maximo Moscoso	348	1.0%	N/A
Total votes			33,843	100.0%

District 37

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Byron Baer (incumbent)	22,543	61.9%	4.5
	Republican	Barry S. Honig	13,860	38.1%	4.5
Total votes			36,403	100.0%

District 38

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Joseph Coniglio (incumbent)	23,077	55.7%	2.5
	Republican	Rose Marie Heck	18,321	44.3%	2.5
Total votes			41,398	100.0%

District 39

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Gerald Cardinale (incumbent)	30,718	62.3%	0.6
	Democratic	Richard Muti	18,605	37.7%	1.5
Total votes			49,323	100.0%

District 40

New Jersey general election, 2003 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Henry McNamara (incumbent)	24,478	64.5%	2.2
	Democratic	Matt Rogers	13,493	35.5%	2.2
Total votes			37,971	100.0%

References

1. Jacobson, Louis (October 4, 2002). "2002 State Legislature Ratings" . The Cook Political Report : 149–150. Archived from the original on August 24, 2020 – via Harvard Dataverse.
2. "Official List, Candidate Returns for State Senate for November 2003 General Election" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 5, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2015.