1989Flipped from DemocraticFinal resultsSpecial election
1989 special election for New Jersey Legislative District 11
New Jersey State Senate · New Jersey
Joseph A. Palaia (R) won with 51.3% of the vote, defeating John Damico (D) by 3.6 points, flipping a seat Democrats held.
Joseph A. PalaiaRepublican · winner
51.3%30,878
John DamicoDemocrat
47.7%28,722
Joshua LeinsdorfOther party
0.9%551
60,151 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1989
Races before and after
Source: Past results: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)