See who won the 2024 primary election in Morris County races

Morris County voters decided dozens of local races in Tuesday's primary − and set the stage for contested elections for U.S. Senate and Congress in November.

Mendham Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner came up short in her bid for the Republican nomination for Senate. The Associated Press called the race for Cape May hotelier Curtis Bashaw. Meanwhile, voters in the Morris-centric 11th Congressional district chose "Jersey Joe" Belnome, a property maintenance inspector from Belleville, to take on incumbent Democrat Mikie Sherrill in the fall.

Eight towns − Dover, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Long Hill, Mendham, Netcong, Pequannock and Rockaway − had competitive primaries on either the Democratic or Republican side for municipal offices.

The winners will go onto the general election in November, though in many towns dominated by one party, victory on Tuesday was tantamount to winning it all.

NJ Primary Election 2024 results:President, Senate, Congress

It wasn't clear as of Wednesday morning how many ballots remained to be counted. The Morris County Clerk had counted about 54,000 as of that time − representing a 14% voter turnout among the county's 385,282 registered voters. Late-arriving mail-in ballots could add to the totals.

Here's a look at results in local contested races, according to unofficial tallies reported Tuesday night by the Morris County Clerk's Office:

Dover election results

Four seats are open on the town council, one in each of four wards in one of the few Morris County towns controlled by Democrats. There were Democratic Party contests for two of the seats; no Republicans were on the ballot:

As of midnight, Ward 1 incumbent Sandra Wittner was leading Leslie Puente, 53-22. In Ward 4, incumbent Marcos Tapia was leading former independent mayoral candidate Dennis Touhey. In Ward 3, Victoria Velez had 66 votes while notably, 12 write-in votes were cast as incumbent Ward 3 Democrat Karol Ruiz chose to bypass the primary to run in the general election as an independent.

"While some [vote-by-mail ballots] will still trickle in over the next few days, it appears the Democrats of Ward 1 have decided they aren’t done with me yet!" the Wittner campaign posted on social media. "Thank you to everyone for your support, your well wishes, and your votes."

Ward 1

• Leslie Puente: 22
• Sandra Wittner: 53

Ward 4

• Marcos Tapia: 42
• Dennis Touhey: 33

Jefferson election results

Three seats are open on the all-Republican council this year, with current Council President Jay Dunham choosing not to seek re-election. Incumbents H. Ronald Smith and Robert Birmingham are seeking new terms. As of deadline, Smith was trailing Birmingham, Barbara "Barbie" Garruto and Daniel Schultz.

• Robert Birmingham: 1,391
• Barbara Garruto: 1,456
• Daniel Schultz: 1,503
• H. Ronald Smith: 517

Kinnelon election results

With incumbent William Yago not running three Republicans are seeking two spots on the council. They include another incumbent Vincent Russo, who was losing in early returns to Ronald Reckler and Robert Lewis. No Democrats are declared.

• Robert Lewis: 731
• Ronald Reckler: 691
• Vincent Russo: 211

Long Hill election results

Two Republicans are seeking three nominations to township committee, including current Mayor Guy Piserchia. Piserchia was running a close second to Aubrey Reichard-Eline.

• Joe Ferrandino: 205
• Guy Piserchia: 526
• Aubrey Reichard-Eline: 555

Mendham election results:

Four Republicans competed for two spots to run for borough council:

• Steven Andrew: 201
• Matthew Bruin: 390
• Alexandria Henry Traut: 398
• Brennan Reilly: 125

Netcong election results

Three Republicans are running for two seats, including incumbents Joseph Albensi and Todd Morton:

• Joseph Albensi: 134
• Todd Morton: 160
• Matthew Eddy: 159

Pequannock election results

In the latest reported numbers early Wednesday, RepublicansVincent Siracusa and David Kohle were ahead of Ryan Herd, who also serves as the town's mayor, in their bids for two council seats.

• Ryan Herd: 625
• David Kohle: 1,321
• Vincent Siracusa: 1,249

Rockaway borough election results

With three candidates seeking two GOP spots, incumbents James Hurley and Thomas Haynes were leading Angelo Natale in early returns.

• Thomas J. Haynes: 356
• James Hurley: 332
• Angelo Natale: 210

Correction: A previous version of this story mistakenly said Lincoln Park had a contested primary race in 2024. It did not.

William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com 

Twitter/X: @wwesthoven