akashic
1876–2024
Salem County, New Jersey
Salem County·New Jersey

Salem County delivered a near-tie in 2024.

A rural Delaware River county shifting steadily toward GOP margins

18762024·38 elections
Salem County, New Jersey · Peretzp · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+19
in 2024
Archetype
Tossup
since the recent cycles
Population
65,275
2024 ACS
Most similar
Somerset County
MD · similarity 0.97
43 precincts · 31,085 votes cast
Trump · R+19
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−19.2%
12,27518,22931,085
2020R
−12.9%
14,47918,82733,712
2016R
−15.0%
11,90416,38129,853
2012D
+1.3%
14,71914,33429,623
2008D
+3.9%
16,04414,81631,363
2004R
−6.6%
13,74915,72129,781
2000D
+5.4%
13,71812,25726,972
1996D
+10.6%
12,0449,29425,992
1992R
−1.1%
10,06210,36327,935
1988R
−20.6%
9,95615,24025,606
1984R
−31.9%
8,93517,36826,452
1980R
−11.0%
10,20913,00025,474
1976D
+4.8%
12,82611,63924,977
1972R
−30.7%
8,60916,37125,249
1968R
−0.9%
11,17211,40726,251
1964D
+34.5%
17,8468,68226,545
1960R
−6.8%
12,39414,19226,607
1956R
−20.6%
9,27614,09123,423
1952R
−2.8%
11,36212,02623,442
1948D
+1.7%
9,2788,96118,418
1944D
+13.1%
10,3457,94218,310
1940D
+20.1%
12,2448,13220,433
1936D
+20.3%
11,6147,67119,402
1932R
−14.4%
7,3579,87017,425
1928R
−60.7%
3,00112,32315,360
1924R
−41.4%
3,2068,02711,657
1920R
−36.2%
3,4837,63811,485
1916R
−9.6%
3,3534,0807,588
1912D
+15.5%
2,7451,8036,081
1908R
−7.7%
3,1733,7137,017
1904R
−13.6%
2,7753,6946,750
1900R
−6.2%
2,9813,3986,710
1896R
−13.4%
2,8023,7176,836
1892D
+1.3%
3,2373,1526,700
1888
No data
1884
No data
1880
No data
1876
No data
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
100.0%
African American
11.8%
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander combined.
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
0.0%
speak English only
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Catholic & Orthodox
11.9%
Other Christian
6.0%
Methodist
5.2%
Non-Christian
3.9%
Baptist
3.0%
Mainline Protestant
2.1%
Pentecostal & Holiness
0.7%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 67.2% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Salem County's agricultural flatlands and small manufacturing towns anchor a voter base that has moved Republican by double digits over the past two presidential cycles, reaching R+19.2 in 2024.

The county's recent history is a story of close margins. The Democratic margin reached thirty-five points in 1964; the Republican margin reached sixty-one points in 1928. Most other elections have been decided by single-digit points.

Salem County's demographics — a population of 65,275, a 73% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $79,960 — situate the county close to national averages on several dimensions. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Somerset County and Macomb County.