# 1997 New Jersey gubernatorial election

Elections in New Jersey :
Federal government
U.S. President
1788-89
1792
1796
1800
1804
1808
1812
1816
1820
1824
1828
1832
1836
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
Dem
2008
Rep
Dem
2012
2016
Dem
2020
Dem
2024
Dem
Rep
U.S. Senate
1788
1790
1790 (sp)
1792
1796
1796 (sp)
1798
1799 (sp)
1801 (sp)
1803 (sp)
1804
1808
1809
1809 (sp)
1810
1815
1816 (sp)
1817
1820
1823
1823 (sp)
1826
1826 (sp)
1829
1829 (sp)
1833
1835
1839
1840
1845
1846
1851
1853 (sp)
1857
1858
1863 (sp)
1864
1866 (sp)
1867 (sp)
1869
1875
1877
1881
1883
1886
1889
1893
1895
1899
1901
1902 (sp)
1905
1907
1911
1913
1916
1918
1918 (sp)
1922
1924
1928
1930
1930 (sp)
1932 (sp)
1934
1936
1938 (sp)
1940
1942
1944 (sp)
1948
1954
1958
1960
1964
1966
1970
1972
1976
1978
1982
1984
1988
1990
1994
1996
2000
2002
2006
2008
2012
2013 (sp)
2014
2018
2020
2024
2026
U.S. House of Representatives
1789
1791
1792
1794
1795 (sp AL)
1797
1798
1800
1803
1804
1806
1808 (sp AL)
1808
1810 (sp AL)
1810
1814 (sp 3rd)
1813
1814
1816
1818
1820
1821 (sp AL)
1822
1824
1826
1828
1828 (sp AL)
1830
1832
1834
1836
1836
1838
1840
1842
1844
1846
1850
1852
1854
1856
1858
1860
1862
1864
1866
1868
1870
1872
1874
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1913 (sp 6th)
1914
1916
1920
1924
1926
1928
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1948
1950
1951 (sp 9th)
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1968
1972
1980
1984
1988
1988 (sp 3rd)
1990
1990 (sp 1st)
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2006
2006 (5th)
2006 (12th)
2008
2010
2012
2012 (sp 10th)
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
2024 (sp 10th)
2026 :
State government
General elections
2009
2010
2011
2013
2015
2017
2019
2020
2021
2023
2025
Gubernatorial elections
1843
1844
1847
1850
1853
1856
1859
1862
1865
1868
1871
1874
1877
1880
1883
1886
1889
1892
1895
1898
1901
1904
1907
1910
1913
1916
1919
1922
1925
1928
1931
1934
1937
1940
1943
1946
1949
1953
1957
1961
1965
1969
1973
1977
1981
1985
1989
1993
1997
2001
2005
2009
2013
2017
2021
2025
Senate elections
1873
1957
1959
1961
1963
1965
1967
1971
1973
1977
1981
1983
1987
1991
1993
1997
2001
2003
2007
2011
2013
2017
2021
2023
General Assembly elections
1985
1987
1989
1991
2015
2017
2019
2021
2023
2025 :
Newark
Mayoral elections
1970
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
2022 :
Jersey City
Mayoral elections
2001
2004
2005
2009
2013
2017
2021
2025 :
Hoboken
Mayoral elections
2005
2017
2021
2025 :
Atlantic City
Mayoral elections
2017
2021 :
vte :
The 1997 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1997. In the Democratic primary, state senator and Woodbridge Township mayor James McGreevey defeated pre-U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews by 9,993 votes. In the general election, Republican Governor Christine Todd Whitman defeated McGreevey by 26,953 votes. Whitman won 46.87% of the vote, with Democratic nominee James McGreevey receiving 45.82% and Libertarian Murray Sabrin receiving 4.7%.

## Republican primary
### Candidates

* Christine Todd Whitman, incumbent Governor of New Jersey

### Results

Republican Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Christine Todd Whitman (incumbent) | 147,731 | 100.00 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 147,731 | 100.00 |

## Democratic primary
### Candidates

* Jim McGreevey, Mayor of Woodbridge Township and New Jersey State Senator
* Rob Andrews, U.S. Representative
* Michael Murphy, Morris County Prosecutor
* Frank C. Marmo, perennial candidate

### Results

Democratic Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Jim McGreevey | 148,153 | 39.86 |
| | Democratic | Rob Andrews | 138,160 | 37.17 |
| | Democratic | Michael Murphy | 79,172 | 21.30 |
| | Democratic | Frank C. Marmo | 6,189 | 1.67 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 371,674 | 100 |

## General election
### Candidates

* James McGreevey (D), State Senator and Mayor of Woodbridge
* Murray Sabrin (L), Ramapo College professor
* Christine Todd Whitman (R), incumbent Governor

### Campaign

In June, a 60-second radio ad paid for by the New Jersey Republican Party focused on the 30% income tax cut and 180,000 new jobs. Whitman's ads blamed McGreevey for the state's auto insurance rates. The Whitman campaign emphasized the drops in unemployment, violent crime and welfare rolls during her term. Other ads took aim at McGreevey's record on taxes, particularly his support for former Gov. Jim Florio's (D) tax increase. The RNC criticized former Gov. Jim Florio (D) in an ad October, calling his 1990 tax increase a result of electing "liberal Democrats".
In September, McGreevey unveiled two TV ads criticizing Whitman and focusing on property taxes, auto insurance rates, pension bond debts, and education standards. The Democratic National Committee also spent $1 million during the home stretch of the campaign on television ads for Democratic candidates statewide. In October, a poll found that voters of NJ called auto insurance the most important issue in the campaign, and property taxes second.

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jim McGreevey (D) | Christine Todd Whitman (R) | Murray Sabrin (L) | Other | Undecided |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | June 6–8, 1997 | 602 RV | ±3.5% | 38% | 44% | — | 18% | 18% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | June 11–16, 1997 | 613 RV | ±3.5% | 33% | 49% | — | 18% | 18% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | September 2–7, 1997 | 673 RV | ±3.5% | 35% | 47% | — | 18% | 18% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | September 2–7, 1997 | 673 RV | ±3.5% | 32% | 47% | 3% | 18% | 18% |
| Quinnipiac College | September 8–13, 1997 | 865 | ±3.3% | 37% | 49% | — | 4% | 10% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | October 12–15, 1997 | 631 RV | ±3.5% | 40% | 45% | — | 15% | 15% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | October 12–15, 1997 | 631 RV | ±3.5% | 38% | 42% | 6% | 14% | 14% |
| Quinnipiac College | October 14–20, 1997 | 1,120 | ±2.9% | 37% | 45% | 8% | 1% | 9% |
| New York Times/CBS News | October 25–29, 1997 | 1,082 | ±3.0% | 33% | 44% | 8% | 3% | 12% |
| Rutgers-Eagleton | October 28–31, 1997 | 613 LV | ±3.0% | 36% | 45% | 9% | 18% | 18% |

### Results

This was the first gubernatorial election in the state since 1949 where a Republican won without Passaic County.
New Jersey gubernatorial election, 1997 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Christine Todd Whitman (incumbent) | 1,133,394 | 46.87% | 2.46 |
| | Democratic | Jim McGreevey | 1,107,968 | 45.82% | 2.47 |
| | Libertarian | Murray Sabrin | 114,172 | 4.72% | 4.40 |
| | Conservative | Richard J. Pezzullo | 34,906 | 1.44% | 1.24 |
| | Green | Madelyn R. Hoffman | 10,703 | 0.44% | N/A |
| | Independent | Michael Perrone, Jr. | 6,805 | 0.28% | N/A |
| | Socialist Workers | Robert B. Miller | 2,816 | 0.12% | 0.07 |
| | Socialist | Greg Pason | 2,800 | 0.12% | N/A |
| | Natural Law | Lincoln Norton | 2,540 | 0.11% | N/A |
| | Independent | Nuncie A. Ripa, Jr. | 2,240 | 0.09% | N/A |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 25,426 | 1.05% | 0.01 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,418,344 | | |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Swing | | |

#### Results by county

| County | Whitman votes | Whitman % | McGreevey votes | McGreevey % | Other votes | Other % |
| Atlantic | 31,364 | 47.3% | 29,091 | 43.9% | 5,791 | 8.7% |
| Bergen | 148,934 | 53.3% | 118,834 | 42.5% | 11,903 | 4.3% |
| Burlington | 55,523 | 43.5% | 60,690 | 47.5% | 11,485 | 9.0% |
| Camden | 51,643 | 35.7% | 82,028 | 56.7% | 10,933 | 7.6% |
| Cape May | 18,227 | 49.6% | 15,395 | 41.9% | 3,159 | 8.6% |
| Cumberland | 13,651 | 36.5% | 19,977 | 53.5% | 3,729 | 10.0% |
| Essex | 69,470 | 35.3% | 120,429 | 61.2% | 6,778 | 3.4% |
| Gloucester | 30,314 | 38.4% | 41,082 | 52.1% | 7,519 | 9.5% |
| Hudson | 47,468 | 35.6% | 80,526 | 60.4% | 5,394 | 4.0% |
| Hunterdon | 24,465 | 59.5% | 10,983 | 26.7% | 5,698 | 13.8% |
| Mercer | 44,056 | 40.8% | 54,977 | 50.9% | 8,905 | 8.3% |
| Middlesex | 83,149 | 39.3% | 110,354 | 52.2% | 17,911 | 5.5% |
| Monmouth | 105,535 | 53.9% | 74,098 | 37.8% | 16,189 | 8.3% |
| Morris | 97,414 | 65.4% | 41,296 | 27.7% | 10,252 | 6.9% |
| Ocean | 84,897 | 53.8% | 57,944 | 36.7% | 15,076 | 9.5% |
| Passaic | 55,541 | 45.2% | 60,256 | 49.1% | 6,966 | 5.7% |
| Salem | 10,686 | 49.9% | 8,790 | 41.0% | 1,950 | 9.1% |
| Somerset | 51,465 | 57.4% | 29,089 | 32.4% | 9,154 | 10.2% |
| Sussex | 25,458 | 60.4% | 11,331 | 26.9% | 5,332 | 12.7% |
| Union | 68,721 | 46.6% | 69,673 | 47.2% | 9,065 | 6.1% |
| Warren | 15,413 | 50.8% | 11,125 | 36.7% | 3,793 | 12.5% |

#### Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

* Atlantic
* Cape May

#### Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

* Burlington
* Mercer
* Passaic