Watchung, NJ is a small borough in Somerset County, known for its recreational activities and charming atmosphere. Politically speaking, Watchung has its own Mayor and Township Committee to govern the community. These elected officials make decisions on matters ranging from taxes to public safety regulations and infrastructure projects. The Mayor leads the committee and sets the agenda for the governing body. There is also a municipal court system which handles legal issues such as zoning or parking disputes as well as criminal cases. With elections held every four years, Watchung residents have the opportunity to choose their leaders who will represent their interests in government.
The political climate in Watchung, NJ is somewhat liberal.
Somerset County, NJ is moderately liberal. In Somerset County, NJ 59.5% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 38.5% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.0% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Somerset county remained overwhelmingly Democratic, 59.5% to 38.5%.
Somerset county voted Democratic in the four most recent Presidential elections, after 2000 and 2004 went Republican.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Watchung, NJ is somewhat liberal.
Somerset County, New Jersey is moderately liberal.
New York-Newark-Jersey City Metro Area is strongly liberal.
New Jersey is somewhat liberal.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Watchung, New Jersey: r r d d D D
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D if the Democratic Party candidate won and I if the Independent Party candidate won. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Watchung, NJ
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 937 contributions totaling $164,922 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $176 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 223 contributions totaling $203,709 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $913 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)