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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Chris Christie stated on August 7, 2012 in a news conference: Says \"a Republican hasn\'t won [an election] for a presidency in New Jersey since 1988.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" true/3d4df195c595a07e3fd69b5e4aab3e3c.jpg.\\") ![\\"true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") * New Jersey * Elections * States * Chris Christie By Erin O\'Neill August 15, 2012 # Chris Christie says Mitt Romney isn’t counting on New Jersey to win presidency Mitt Romney can rely on the vote of at least one New Jerseyan in November: Gov. Chris Christie. But even Christie, a top Romney surrogate tapped to deliver the keynote address on Aug. 28 at the Republican National Convention, admits the rest of the state isn’t likely to swing in favor of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. \"I don\'t think Mitt Romney\'s counting our electoral votes in his column. I believe the overwhelming likelihood is that President [Barack] Obama will win New Jersey. I think all the polls indicate that,\" Christie said during an Aug. 7 press conference \"A Republican hasn\'t won [an election] for a presidency in New Jersey since 1988. And so it\'s a been a long haul. Could it happen? Sure, it could happen. But I think if Mitt Romney wins New Jersey he\'s probably going to win in 45 other states,\" Christie said. PolitiFact New Jersey can’t check Christie’s electoral prediction, but we can test his claim about the state’s past votes on the Truth-O-Meter. Was 1988 the last time New Jersey went red in a presidential election? It’s true: a majority of voters in the Garden State cast votes in 1988 for the then-GOP presidential candidate George H. W. Bush. That wasn’t an aberration at the time. Republican nominees had won New Jersey in every presidential election since 1968. Bush took New Jersey in 1988 with more than 56 percent of the vote, defeating Democratic rival Michael Dukakis to secure a spot in the White House. But four years later, New Jersey voters decided against sending Bush back to Washington for a second term. Bill Clinton edged out Bush in New Jersey in 1992, grabbing nearly 43 percent of the state’s vote. Bush lost the state with more than 40 percent of the vote. Since then New Jersey has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election cycle. Here’s a breakdown of New Jersey’s presidential voting history: Presidential Election Year Democratic Votes Republican Votes 2008: Obama vs. McCain 2,215,422 1,613,207 2004: Kerry vs. Bush 1,911,430 1,670,003 2000: Gore vs. Bush 1,788,850 1,284,173 1996: Clinton vs. Dole 1,652,361 1,103,099 1992: Clinton vs. Bush 1,436,206 1,356,865 1988: Dukakis vs. Bush 1,320,352 1,743,192 1984: Mondale vs. Reagan 1,261,323 1,933,630 1980: Carter vs. Reagan 1,147,364 1,546,557 1976: Carter vs. Ford 1,444,653 1,509,688 1972: McGovern vs. Nixon 1,102,211 1,845,502 1968: Humphrey vs. Nixon 1,264,206 1,325,467 1964: Johnson vs. Goldwater 1,867,671 963,843 1960: Kennedy vs. Nixon 1,385,415 1,363,324 Our ruling Christie said \"a Republican hasn\'t won [an election] for a presidency in New Jersey since 1988.\" When Bush took on Dukakis in 1988, a majority of New Jersey voters cast a ballot for the Republican candidate, helping send Bush to the White House. But four years later, the tide turned in New Jersey and the state has voted Democratic in every presidential election since. We rate this claim True. #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on July 30, 2024 in en una publicación en Facebook “Estados Unidos decide INVADIR VENEZUELA”. ![\\"true\\"](\\" rulings/tom_ruling_falso/7afe5367c2d46afca69ca3f17ae24296.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" rulings/tom_ruling_falso.png\\") By Maria Briceño • July 31, 2024 To comment on this ruling, go to NJ.com. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources The Asbury Park Press, Christie in demand to raise cash for the GOP, Aug. 12, 2012 U.S. House of Representatives: Office of the Clerk, Election Statistics, accessed Aug. 14, 2012 New Jersey Division of Elections, NJ Election Information and Results Archive, accessed Aug. 14, 2012 New Jersey Division of Elections, November 2008 General Election results, accessed Aug. 14, 2012 New Jersey Division of Elections, November 2004 General Election results New Jersey Division of Elections, November 2000 General Election results New Jersey Division of Elections, November 1996 General Election results New Jersey Division of Elections, November 1992 General Election results New Jersey Division of Elections, November 1988 General Election results New Jersey Division of Elections, November 1984 General Election results New Jersey Division of Election, General Election Data: 1924 to 2010 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Erin O\'Neill ![](\\" ![](\\" Raymond Bateman stated on November 23, 2012 in a column: Says that in the 1985 election former Gov. Tom Kean had \"the largest winning margin for a gubernatorial candidate in Jersey history.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • November 29, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Frank Lautenberg stated on November 13, 2012 in a speech on the Senate floor: Says because of Hurricane Sandy in Atlantic City \"much of that boardwalk no longer exists -- just the pillars where the boardwalk used to be.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • November 25, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Big Gamble NJ stated on November 13, 2012 in a website: \"In 2011, our state-run lottery funded New Jersey classrooms by over $930 million.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • November 19, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Chris Christie stated on October 30, 2012 in an interview on NBC Nightly News: Says New Jersey is \"50th in return of our federal tax dollars.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • November 18, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tom Kean Jr. stated on October 17, 2012 in an interview with reporters at William Paterson University: \"New Jersey is the only state in the union that spent less on higher education than it did at the beginning of the decade.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • October 28, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Chris Christie stated on October 16, 2012 in a town hall meeting in West Milford: \"Now remember, property taxes went up 70 percent in the 10 years before I became governor.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • October 22, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Shelley Adler stated on October 10, 2012 in a campaign event: Says Rep. Jon Runyan \"voted to redefine rape.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • October 18, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joseph Kyrillos stated on October 10, 2012 in a debate on New Jersey 101.5-FM: Says \"when I voted against [an increase in the minimum wage], it was in the 80s.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • October 15, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joseph Kyrillos stated on October 4, 2012 in a debate on NJTV: Says under U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez’s watch the nation’s unemployment rate and debt doubled and the federal budget deficit quadrupled. ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • October 7, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joseph Kyrillos stated on October 4, 2012 in a debate on NJTV: Says the United States has the \"highest corporate tax rate in the world.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • October 5, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Chris Christie stated on September 25, 2012 in a campaign event in New Hampshire: \"The income tax that started at 2 percent under Governor Byrne is now 9 percent.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • October 3, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Jennifer Beck stated on September 20, 2012 in an interview with NJToday: \"We have more people working in the state of New Jersey today than we\'ve ever had in our history.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • September 27, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" John Burzichelli stated on September 19, 2012 in an interview with NJToday: Says \"the governor is going around the state talking about [how] we should fund an income tax cut\" that benefits higher income earners and not lower income earners ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • September 24, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Jon Runyan stated on September 17, 2012 in an interview with Townsquare Media New Jersey: Says \"if we do nothing and continue to let Obamacare siphon off that $700 billion dollars off the top of it, Medicare goes away in less than 10 years -- certain accounts of it -- and it just falls apart at the seams.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Erin O\'Neill • September 20, 2012 ![](\\" ![](\\" Menendez Facts stated on September 4, 2012 in a blog: \"Sen. Bob Menendez voted to enact a new tax on the sale of homes of 3.8%.\" ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Erin O\'Neill • September 17, 2012 ### Chris Christie says Mitt Romney isn’t counting on New Jersey to win presidency * ![](\\" ![](\\" Threads posts stated on August 27, 2024 in a Threads post: Charlie Kirk X post about iPhone storage reveals his top app is Grindr. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Jeff Cercone • August 29, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 26, 2024 in remarks at Turning Point USA summit: Kamala Harris “wants to forcibly compel doctors and nurses against their will to give chemical castration drugs to young children.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Grace Abels • August 29, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" J.D. Vance stated on August 25, 2024 in an interview on NBC\'s \"Meet the Press\": “Anything that you lose on the tariff from the perspective of the consumer, you gain in higher wages, so you\'re ultimately much better off.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 29, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Dave McCormick stated on August 25, 2024 in a TV ad: Sen. Bob Casey “voted to sell American oil to China.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Mike Rogers stated on August 16, 2024 in a blog post: Rep. Elissa Slotkin’s vote for the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act was a vote to “cut Medicare benefits for seniors.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Social Media stated on August 21, 2024 in publicaciones en redes sociales: Videos muestran a Kamala Harris ebria. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Maria Briceño • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 27, 2024 in a social media post: The order of candidate names on North Carolina’s ballot shows a “clear attempt at voter manipulation.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Paul Specht • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 23, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Colin Kaepernick \'screams\' as Coach Kyle Shanahan denies his return request: \'The kneeling symbol has no chance of coming back.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 21, 2024 in a Facebook post: Beyoncé and Taylor Swift announced a “big endorsement concert” and said, “No more silence, before it’s too late, our voice must be heard now!” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 28, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 22, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Breaking: WNBA referees disqualify players under league’s new ‘no anthem kneeling’ rule.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 28, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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Says a Republican Has not won an election for a presidency in New Jersey since 1988