Livingston Voters Back Booker, Lonegan in U.S. Senate Primary

Livingston voted overwhelmingly for the two front-runners in the U.S. Senate primary on Tuesday to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Frank Laugtenberg.

After the ballots were tallied, Newark Mayor Cory Booker lead the Democratic ticket with 944 votes, or 68 percent of the vote, and Steven Longean lead the way for Republicans with 205 votes, or 74 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. 

As expected, Booker and Lonegan won their parties's primary nomination. The two will face off for in the special general election on Oct. 16. 

The overall turnout was a tepid 8 percent, with only 1,715 of the 21,203 eligible Democrat and Republican voters casting a ballot on Tuesday. Democrats also handily out numbered Republican voters, 1,382 to 336, respectively.

The following is the number of votes candidates received in Tuesday’s primary from Livingston voters, followed by the percent of the overall vote, according to preliminary numbers. 

Democrats

• Cory Booker: 944 votes, 69 percent
• Sheila Oliver: 16 votes, 1 percent
• Frank Pallone: 236 votes, 17 percent
• Rush Holt: 182 votes, 13 percent

Republicans

• Steven Lonegan: 250 votes, 74 percent
• Alieta Eck: 3 votes, .89 percent

In the 2012 presidential primary, Livingston Democrats also turned out in larger numbers than local Republicans, 1,190 to 1,619, respectively.

But when it came to residents’ wallets in 2012, they gave more money to the Republican candidate Gov. Mitt Romney than President Barack Obama.