Lost in the hubbub surrounding the bill that raised the debt ceiling and finally brought an end to the government shutdown was the election of a new member of the Senate; Newark Mayor Cory Booker won a special election over Republican nominee Steve Lonegan in order to fill the vacancy left by Frank Lautenberg's death in June, according to USA Today.
Throughout his campaign Lonegan expressed confidence that voters would turn out in support of him because of disapproval in President Barack Obama and the Affordable Care Act; in the end the voter in New Jersey weren't moved by Lonegan and sent a Democrat to the Senate like they have in every Senate race for the last 40 years, according to USA Today.
"We're looking at a base election. This is really what it boils down to. And, in New Jersey, a base election is won by a Democrat," Patrick Murray, a political scientist at Monmouth University, told USA Today. "There really was very little in any of the polling that suggested independents were splitting one way or the other."
Booker is known for his social media savvy and his skills at uniting people; in his victory speech Booker said that he would not get involved in the "shallow politics" of Washington, according to NBC News.
"Despite the cynicism and the negativity we often see on TV, despite a special election, New Jerseyans, hundreds of thousands, rejected all that and came out and voted," Booker said. "But more than that, you didn't just vote, but you believed that your voice and your vote mattered. You believe that you don't have to resign yourself to what's wrong, but you can do something - we can do something to make that right."
Thank you so much, New Jersey. I'm proud to be your senator-elect: https://t.co/vs9ew7iOkd
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) October 17, 2013
Shortly before the election Booker stopped his campaign to mourn for his father, Cary, who passed away from a stroke on Thursday. The newly elected Senator said that his father was with him "in spirit" and credited his parents for giving him the will to work hard, according to NBC News.
Booker will be joining Robert Hernandez in the Senate as the state of New Jersey becomes only the second state to ever have two minorities serving in the Senate at the same time. The only other state to do so was Hawaii, according to Fox News.
