The major-party filing deadline passed on April 1 to run for seats in the New Jersey General Assembly. The filing deadline for independent candidates is on June 4. All 80 seats in the state Assembly are up for election this year; the primary is scheduled for June 4, and the general election is on November 5.
The New Jersey General Assembly has 40 multi-member districts, with two representatives in each district. In Democratic and Republican primaries, the top two candidates from each party move forward to the general election, and the top two vote recipients in the general election are declared the winners.
A total of 181 candidates filed in the election – 98 Democrats and 83 Republicans. There are 18 contested primaries with more than two candidates running.
A total of 76 of the chamber’s 80 incumbents (95 percent) filed for re-election, which leaves four open-seat races. All 76 incumbents running for re-election face at least one challenger. In the 2017 state Assembly elections, 88.8 percent of incumbents filed for re-election and nine seats were open.
Entering the 2019 election, the New Jersey General Assembly has 54 Democrats and 26 Republicans. A majority in the chamber requires 41 seats. New Jersey has a Democratic state government trifecta. A state government trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and both state legislative chambers.
Additional reading
https://ballotpedia.org/New_Jersey_General_Assembly_elections,_2017
https://ballotpedia.org/State_government_trifectas
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