New Jersey's incumbent Governor Phil Murphy, a Democrat, is finding himself falling behind his Republican challenger on Tuesday as voters decide who will next lead the Garden State.
As of Tuesday night Murphy is trailing former state lawmaker Jack Ciattarelli by less than two per cent, with more than 30 per cent of the state reporting, according to the New York Times.
Polls closed in New Jersey at 8pm Eastern Time.
Murphy had long been expected to win, polling more than 10 points ahead of former state lawmaker Jack Ciattarelli in a Monmouth University survey released just last week.
But a Democratic governor hasn't won re-election in New Jersey since 1977.
The state has been reliable for Democrats on the national stage, having gone blue every presidential election since Bill Clinton won in 1992.
Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans there by roughly one million voters.
It's also the only other state besides Virginia to hold a gubernatorial election the year after a presidential race.
For the last five times Americans elected a new commander-in-chief, New Jersey has elected a governor of the opposite party.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy speaks to volunteers as he meets with Newark Mayor Ras Baraka during the gubernatorial election in Newark on Election Day (November 2)
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy shakes hands with Baraka as they greet volunteers during the gubernatorial election in Newark, New Jersey, U.S., November 2
Murphy rose to power after Donald Trump took the White House, and similarly Republican Chris Christie was elected to state office in 2009 after Barack Obama's historic victory.
Ciattarelli had largely focused his campaign on New Jersey's property taxes - some of the highest in the the country.
Instead of arguing the fact, Murphy sought to make the case to voters that the high penalties deliver more
