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 County results Martine: 40–50% 50–60% Frelinghuysen: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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TheUnited States Senate election of 1916 in New Jersey was held on November 7, 1916.
IncumbentDemocratic SenatorJames E. Martine ran for re-election to a second term in office, but was defeated by Republican State SenatorJoseph S. Frelinghuysen Sr.
Primary elections were held on September 26.[1] Senator Martine defeated a challenge fromJohn W. Wescott, the Attorney General of New Jersey and an ally of PresidentWoodrow Wilson. The Republican nomination narrowly went to State SenatorJoseph S. Frelinghuysen Sr. over former GovernorFranklin Murphy.
This was the first popular election for United States Senator in New Jersey history, following the passage of theSeventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This was also the first of four straight elections to this seat in which the incumbent was defeated.
Senator Martine drew a primary challenge fromWoodrow Wilson allyJohn W. Wescott, the state Attorney General. Wescott's strong alliance with President Wilson and Martine's opposition to administration policy onWorld War I and generalAnglophobia led some Democrats to think him vulnerable.[3] Martine had previously said that he would rather retire to his Union County farm than go to the White House "for orders."[4]
A third candidate from Newark, Frank McDermit, may have drawn away Martine supporters inEssex County. Wescott had the support of the Essex County machine.[3]
Martine defeated Wescott by a large margin inHudson County and won the strong support of ethnic Germans, who approved of his critical stance on Wilson's war policy. Despite strong opposition from the Nugent machine in Essex and McDermit's candidacy, Martine carried the county narrowly with a plurality.[3][5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | James E. Martine (incumbent) | 50,961 | 48.76% | |
| Democratic | John W. Wescott | 29,627 | 28.35% | |
| Democratic | Frank M. McDermit | 17,373 | 16.62% | |
| Democratic | August M. Bruggeman | 6,559 | 6.28% | |
| Total votes | 104,520 | 100.00% | ||
| None | Blank votes | 14,993 | — | |
| Turnout | 119,513 | 100.00% | ||
Given his close alliance with Wilson personally and politically, Wescott's loss was seen as a blow to the administration and Wilson's re-election hopes.[4]
In the campaign, the statewide party machine backed Murphy.[3] Opponents also accused Frelinghuysen of non-residency, given that his winter home and business were in New York.[3] Frelinghuysen was also opposed by automobile owners, based on his record as State Senator.[3] On primary day, most observers expected Murphy to win.[3]
Frelinghuysen won a surprise victory over Murphy, who managed only a small plurality of under 5,000 in his home base of Essex County.[3][5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Joseph Frelinghuysen | 89,361 | 52.31% | |
| Republican | Franklin Murphy | 81,483 | 47.69% | |
| Total votes | 170,844 | 100.00% | ||
| None | Blank votes | 16,570 | — | |
| Turnout | 187,414 | 100.00% | ||
| 1916 Republican U.S. Senate primary[5] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | Frelinghuysen | % | Murphy | % | Total |
| Atlantic | 3,808 | 43.6% | 4,928 | 56.4% | 8,736 |
| Bergen | 5,437 | 46.3% | 6,307 | 53.7% | 11,744 |
| Burlington | 4,826 | 66.3% | 2,452 | 33.7% | 7,278 |
| Camden | 6,427 | 41.0% | 9,231 | 59.0% | 15,658 |
| Cape May | 1,170 | 41.7% | 1,633 | 58.3% | 2,803 |
| Cumberland | 1,971 | 48.7% | 2,077 | 51.3% | 4,048 |
| Essex | 14,501 | 42.9% | 19,267 | 57.1% | 33,768 |
| Gloucester | 2,344 | 66.0% | 1,207 | 34.0% | 3,551 |
| Hudson | 8,466 | 56.7% | 6,462 | 43.3% | 14,928 |
| Hunterdon | 1,232 | 81.5% | 279 | 18.5% | 1,511 |
| Mercer | 5,757 | 57.2% | 4,306 | 42.8% | 10,063 |
| Middlesex | 3,097 | 61.5% | 1,942 | 38.5% | 5,039 |
| Monmouth | 3,483 | 55.4% | 2,805 | 44.6% | 6,288 |
| Morris | 3,817 | 53.9% | 3,266 | 46.1% | 7,083 |
| Ocean | 1,622 | 61.4% | 1,020 | 38.6% | 2,642 |
| Passaic | 9,416 | 53.7% | 8,118 | 46.3% | 17,534 |
| Salem | 1,016 | 70.9% | 428 | 29.1% | 1,434 |
| Somerset | 3,157 | 88.6% | 407 | 11.4% | 3,564 |
| Sussex | 534 | 41.2% | 763 | 58.8% | 1,297 |
| Union | 6,486 | 62.5% | 3,884 | 37.5% | 10,370 |
| Warren | 794 | 53.1% | 701 | 46.9% | 1,495 |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Joseph S. Frelinghuysen Sr. | 244,715 | 55.99% | |
| Democratic | James E. Martine (incumbent) | 170,019 | 38.90% | |
| Socialist | William C. Doughty | 13,358 | 3.06% | |
| Prohibition | Livingston Barbour | 7,178 | 0.11% | |
| Socialist Labor | Rudolph Katz | 1,826 | 0.42% | |
| Total votes | 437,096 | 100.00% | ||
There are six candidates for United States Senator; four Democrats and two Republicans. The candidate, the party they represent and the designation to be printed on their ballots are: August M. Bruggeman, Hoboken, Democrat; James E. Martine, Democrat; Frank McDermit, Newark, Democrat, "Democrat;" James W. Westcott (sic), Haddonfield, Democrat; Joseph S. Frelinghuysen, Raritan, Republican, "Republican;" Franklin Murphy, Newark, Republican, "Republican Party."
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