The 1988 United States Senate election in New Jersey was held on November 8, 1988. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg won re-election to a second term with a margin of 8.37%. This is the last time that New Jersey simultaneously voted for presidential and U.S. Senate candidates of different parties.

Background

Businessman Frank Lautenberg was elected in 1982 in a hard-fought, come-from-behind upset victory over U.S. Representative Millicent Fenwick. Given his narrow victory and low name recognition, New Jersey Republicans eagerly targeted his seat as a potential victory. Popular second-term Governor Thomas Kean led the efforts to recruit a challenger.

Democratic primary Candidates Frank Lautenberg, incumbent Senator since 1983 Elnardo J. Webster, former Hudson County Freeholder Harold J. Young

Campaign Senator Lautenberg formally launched his re-election campaign in April. He ignored his primary opponents, instead focusing on the general election and Pete Dawkins.

Results

Republican primary Candidates Pete Dawkins, financial executive and retired U.S. Army brigadier general

Declined Leonard S. Coleman Jr., New Jersey Commissioner of Community Affairs

Campaign In 1987, Governor Thomas Kean recruited Pete Dawkins to move from New York City to Rumson, New Jersey in order to campaign as a Republican for Senate. Kean served as Dawkins's campaign chair. Efforts to recruit Dawkins were paired with efforts to persuade Commissioner of Community Affairs Leonard S. Coleman Jr. against running; Coleman was a personal friend of the Governor and was the early favorite to challenge Lautenberg.

Pete Dawkins announced his campaign on March 1 with the enthusiastic endorsement of Governor Kean. At his campaign announcement, Kean praised Dawkins as "the only West Point cadet in history to be the Captain of Cadets, president of his class, captain of the football team and finish in the top 5 percent of his class, and, by the way, pick up a Heisman Trophy and Rhodes Scholarship on the side." Dawkins pledged support for giving a presidential line-item veto and a "sweeping reform" of the federal budget process, while favoring budget cuts, including cuts to military spending, over tax increases.

On April 19, President Reagan appeared and spoke at a pre-primary fundraising dinner for Dawkins in Washington D.C., where Dawkins presented Reagan with a football signed by many Heisman Trophy winners.

Results Dawkins was unopposed in the primary.

General election Candidates Pete Dawkins, financial executive and retired U.S. Army brigadier general (Republican) Thomas A. Fiske (Socialist Workers) Joseph F. Job, Bergen County Sheriff and candidate for U.S. Senate in 1970 (Independent) Frank Lautenberg, incumbent U.S. Senator since 1983 (Democratic) Jerry Zeldin (Libertarian)

Campaign With no serious primary threat, Lautenberg and Dawkins targeted each other from early March. Both candidates being political moderates, the campaign quickly turned personal. On the day of Dawkins's campaign announcement, Lautenberg pointed out that he was a lifelong New Jerseyan, while Dawkins had moved to the state to run for Senate. Dawkins responded, "The important thing is not where we were born, but who we are, what our vision for the state is, and how we intend to act in the United States Senate." Lautenberg's carpetbagging accusation was a theme throughout the campaign. Dawkins aimed to tie himself to the popular Governor Kean, while Lautenberg leaned on his relationship with New Jersey's more popular senior Senator, Bill Bradley.

The campaign was full of political mudslinging. In addition to his carpetbagging accusation, Lautenberg's campaign also accused Dawkins's of lying about his war record. Dawkins accused Lautenberg of running a smear campaign, called him a "swamp dog", and criticized him for saying he voted eight times against a senatorial pay raise without mentioning the fact that he did vote once for the pay raise.

Paul Begala and James Carville consulted for the Lautenberg campaign, while Roger Stone consulted for Dawkins. Stone called Dawkins “the biggest thing to hit New Jersey since Bill Bradley.”

Polling

Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin FrankLautenberg (D) PeteDawkins (R) Other/UndecidedThe Star-Ledger/Eagleton Jan. 29–Feb. 8, 1988 587 LV ±4.2% 45% 16% 40%The Star-Ledger/Eagleton May 18–26, 1988 611 LV ±4.0% 45% 28% 27%51%33%16%The Star-Ledger/EagletonSeptember 16–22, 1988765 LV±3.5%48%28%24% 53% 32% 16%The Star-Ledger/EagletonOctober 17–25, 1988774 RV±3.5%46%34%10% 50% 38% 12%627 LV±4.0%47%35%18% 50% 39% 11%The Star-Ledger/EagletonNovember 3–6, 19881,183 RV±2.9%46%35%19% 49% 38% 13%954 LV±3.3%48%36%16% 51% 39% 10%

Results

By county County Frank LautenbergDemocratic Pete DawkinsRepublican Other parties % # % # % # Atlantic 54.7% 41,004 44.6% 33,417 0.7% 493 Bergen 52.6% 199,195 45.5% 172,257 1.9% 7,291 Burlington 52.0% 75,513 47.3% 68,657 0.6% 929 Camden 59.1% 110,718 40.1% 75,162 0.8% 1,438 Cape May 46.6% 19,720 52.8% 22,349 0.5% 223 Cumberland 55.4% 25,379 42.9% 19,680 1.7% 771 Essex 65.0% 170,591 32.4% 85,169 2.6% 6,855 Gloucester 53.4% 46,247 42.9% 39,232 1.7% 1,055 Hudson 61.7% 108,355 37.0% 65,092 1.3% 2,270 Hunterdon 41.1% 18,281 57.6% 25,615 1.2% 544 Mercer 61.8% 80,569 37.7% 49,122 0.6% 724 Middlesex 55.1% 141,067 43.8% 112,182 1.1% 2,796 Monmouth 50.8% 117,063 48.3% 111,318 0.8% 1,906 Morris 43.0% 79,237 56.4% 103,843 0.6% 1,057 Ocean 46.0% 84,812 53.2% 98,161 0.8% 1,512 Passaic 52.7% 77,827 45.0% 66,440 2.4% 3,512 Salem 48.8% 12,485 49.1% 12,562 2.1% 534 Somerset 46.4% 47,648 52.5% 53,969 1.1% 1,138 Sussex 38.4% 19,035 60.4% 29,909 1.2% 613 Union 55.0% 109,852 44.1% 88,027 0.9% 1,775 Warren 45.8% 15,307 53.2% 17,774 1.1% 356

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic Monomuth Bergen Burlington

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican Salem

See also 1988 United States Senate elections

References