Democratic incumbent Vin Gopal holds on to Senate seat in competitive New Jersey coastal district
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Incumbent state Sen. Vin Gopal won reelection on Tuesday in his closely contested coastal New Jersey district, keeping a key swing seat under Democratic control.
Gopal defeated Republican Steve Dnistrian in the 11th Legislative District in Monmouth County. His victory delivers Gopal a third term in the Senate and means Democrats successfully fended off a challenger in an increasingly moderate district.
The campaign was among the most heavily contested this year, and saw more political spending than any other race, according to October figures from the state’s campaign finance watchdog.
In an interview earlier this year, Dnistrian said a top issue he heard from voters was concern that parents didn’t have enough control over school districts. The issue made headlines when the state attorney general sued three Monmouth County school districts, charging they violated the state’s anti-discrimination law with policies that called on officials to notify parents if their children had come out as transgender. State school guidelines and a 2017 law call for keeping a student’s orientation confidential.