New Jersey 5th Congressional District (NJ) — Elections 1876–2024

New Jersey 5th Congressional District, New Jersey: Tossup district. In 2024, voted R+1%. Republican peak: R+52 in 1920.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin: R+1MIT Election Lab
Political archetype: TossupAkashic typology
Population: 1,144,1222024 5-year
Median household income: $113,1382024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic): 53.4%2024 5-year
Black: 6.8%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino: 28.1%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin: D+22 in 1964MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin: R+52 in 1920MIT Election Lab

GOTTHEIMER, Josh S.Congress 119 · Democratic

−1 liberal

+1 conservative

Predecessors: GARRETT, Scott (2015–2017), GARRETT, Scott (2013–2015), GARRETT, Scott (2011–2013), GARRETT, Scott (2009–2011)

Source · Voteview / Lewis, Poole, Rosenthal et al. (CC-BY).

2024 results by constituent county

3 counties · 1 D · 2 R

R+60

D+60

One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.

38 presidential elections

Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
Year	Won	Margin	Democratic	Republican	Total
2024	R	−1.3%	253,813	260,638	528,381
2020	D	+12.7%	317,294	245,252	566,108
2016	D	+11.0%	262,009	208,210	488,784
2012	D	+12.3%	249,205	193,901	448,316
2008	D	+9.3%	258,637	214,066	476,892
2004	D	+2.6%	230,476	218,728	452,626
2000	D	+11.6%	222,004	174,586	410,232
1996	D	+13.1%	209,351	156,779	402,799
1992	R	−3.6%	181,162	197,257	442,077
1988	R	−18.5%	170,286	248,480	422,858
1984	R	−26.4%	166,815	287,760	457,743
1980	R	−21.3%	149,473	242,487	436,939
1976	R	−12.0%	192,212	245,660	446,631
1972	R	−31.3%	154,307	297,778	458,117
1968	R	−12.9%	173,012	229,313	435,222
1964	D	+21.5%	256,063	164,967	423,286
1960	R	−12.2%	178,519	228,839	412,767
1956	R	−43.4%	102,924	263,209	369,695
1952	R	−30.7%	117,421	223,209	344,413
1948	R	−22.5%	92,765	149,775	253,414
1944	R	−19.5%	104,106	154,877	259,787
1940	R	−15.6%	105,725	144,982	251,562
1936	D	+6.6%	117,781	103,019	222,814
1932	R	−3.3%	93,797	100,552	201,698
1928	R	−21.9%	69,574	108,927	179,571
1924	R	−46.9%	22,399	77,054	116,414
1920	R	−52.0%	19,197	66,083	90,155
1916	R	−16.9%	19,216	27,396	48,431
1912	O	+20.3%	16,276	7,805	41,687
1908	R	−19.4%	15,541	23,533	41,250
1904	R	−15.0%	14,968	20,568	37,456
1900	R	−9.5%	15,404	18,740	35,228
1896	R	−22.3%	11,369	18,343	31,333
1892	D	+3.2%	13,622	12,746	27,052
1888	—	No data	—	—	—
1884	—	No data	—	—	—
1880	—	No data	—	—	—
1876	—	No data	—	—	—

Congressional elections · 17 Senate races

U.S. Senate

Source · MIT Election Lab (MEDSL), Senate. CC-BY 4.0.
Year	Won	D %	R %	Total
2024	D	53.6%	44.0%	4,031,795
2020	D	57.2%	40.9%	4,440,440
2018	D	54.0%	42.8%	3,169,310
2014	D	55.8%	42.3%	1,869,535
2012	D	58.9%	39.4%	3,376,649
2008	D	56.0%	42.0%	3,482,445
2006	D	53.4%	44.3%	2,250,070
2002	D	53.9%	43.9%	2,112,604
2000	D	50.1%	47.1%	3,015,662
1996	D	52.7%	42.6%	2,883,466
1994	D	50.3%	47.0%	2,054,887
1990	D	50.4%	47.4%	1,938,454
1988	D	53.6%	45.2%	2,987,634
1984	D	64.2%	34.9%	3,096,456
1982	D	50.9%	47.8%	2,193,945
1978	D	55.3%	43.1%	1,957,515
1976	D	60.7%	38.0%	2,771,390

Demographics

Race, ethnicity, and ancestry

Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.

Italian

13.7%

Irish

9.7%

German

7.1%

Polish

4.9%

English

3.4%

American

2.8%

French

0.8%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.

Age distribution by sex

Median age: 41.0 in this county, 39.1 nationally

Male

Age

Female

0.8%

85+

1.5%

2.3%

75–84

3.0%

4.7%

65–74

5.3%

6.8%

55–64

7.1%

6.6%

45–54

6.8%

6.6%

35–44

6.6%

6.1%

25–34

6.0%

4.2%

18–24

4.1%

8.3%

5–17

7.9%

2.8%

2.7%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Median household income

2024 inflation-adjusted dollars

$113,138

Congressional District 5 ranks near the middle of US counties.

Congressional District 5$113,138

New Jersey$103,556

United States$80,734

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Poverty rate

All persons below federal poverty line

8.5%

Child poverty is below the national average.

Children under 1811.1%

Working age (18–64)7.3%

Seniors (65+)11.6%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Language at home

Population aged 5 and older

57.6%

speak English only

Spanish22.2%

Other Indo-European9.3%

Asian & Pacific Islander8.1%

Other languages2.9%

Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.

Religious adherents

Adherents per capita by tradition

Catholic & Orthodox

37.8%

Non-Christian

8.6%

Other Christian

3.7%

Mainline Protestant

2.5%

Baptist

1.5%

Pentecostal & Holiness

1.2%

Methodist

1.0%

Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 43.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Stretching from Bergen County's dense suburbs to the rural northwest corner of New Jersey, NJ-05 flipped its presidential preference by roughly nine points between 2020 and 2024, making it one of the state's most closely watched competitive seats.

The district's recent history is a story of close margins. The Democratic margin reached twenty-two points in 1964; the Republican margin reached fifty-two points in 1920. Most other elections have been decided by single-digit points.

Its demographics — a population of 1,144,122, a 53% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $113,138 — situate the district close to national averages on several dimensions.

Compare two places, side by side

Twelve curated comparisons line up election history, demographics, and the divergence story for two places at a glance. Browse all comparisons →

Cite this page

All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.

Congressional District 5, New Jersey. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cd/3405/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.

License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Congressional District 5, New Jersey vote in 2024?

In 2024, Congressional District 5, New Jersey voted Republican by 1.3 points (R+1), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 528,381 votes cast, 253,813 went Democratic and 260,638 went Republican.

What is Congressional District 5, New Jersey's political archetype?

Akashic classifies Congressional District 5, New Jersey as a "Tossup" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 10 times, Republican 23 times, and other 1 times.

When did Congressional District 5, New Jersey last vote Democratic?

The most recent presidential election in which Congressional District 5, New Jersey voted Democratic was 2020.

How many people live in Congressional District 5, New Jersey?

Congressional District 5, New Jersey has a population of 1,144,122 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.

What is the median household income in Congressional District 5, New Jersey?

Median household income in Congressional District 5, New Jersey is $113,138 — above the national median of $80,734. The New Jersey state median is $103,556.

What is the political history of Congressional District 5, New Jersey?

Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Congressional District 5, New Jersey from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 10 went Democratic and 23 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Tossup" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.

New Jersey 5th Congressional District delivered R+1 in 2024 — close enough to flip again next time.

Key facts

U.S. Senate

Demographics

Compare two places, side by side

Frequently asked questions