Democrats swept all three Long Hill Township Committee seats on the ballot on Tuesday, Nov. 3, with Mansi Patel and David Hands claiming the two regular three-year terms and Jason Foley winning a one-year unexpired term by a 125-vote margin over his Republican opponent.
According to New Jersey Globe, Patel and Hands defeated Republican incumbents Matthew Dorsi and Frank Liberato for the regular seats. Patel led the field with 2,127 votes, followed by Hands with 2,086. Dorsi received 2,024 votes, while Liberato received 1,960, per the outlet's reported tallies.
In the race for the one-year unexpired term, Foley received 2,117 votes. The New Jersey Globe identified his opponent as Theresa Fettes, who received 1,992 votes, while reporting from New Jersey Hills Media Group also referred to the Republican candidate as Theresa Fettes.
A Seat Vacated by Resignation
The one-year term at stake was created after Scott Lavender resigned from the committee, the New Jersey Globe reports. Fettes had been appointed in April to fill the remainder of that term before facing voters on Tuesday, Nov. 3, for the one-year unexpired term.
Long Hill's Township Committee operates under a form of government with five members elected at large to staggered three-year terms, according to the township's own description of its governing structure.
A Shift From Recent Statewide Trends
The committee sweep stands out against Long Hill's recent voting history. The township backed Donald Trump by half a point in 2024, and the same report notes that Jack Ciattarelli carried Long Hill by three points in 2025 over Gov. Mikie Sherrill, underscoring how competitive the township has been in statewide races even as local Democrats posted a clean sweep this cycle.
The Long Hill results also landed alongside broader Democratic gains across New Jersey. The party flipped Republican-held seats in the 2nd and 7th Congressional Districts while holding onto all nine seats it already controlled, according to New Jersey Monitor. That outlet reports the results left Republican Chris Smith as the lone Republican in the state's 12-member congressional delegation. In the 7th District, Rebecca Bennett unseated Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr., capturing 57% of the vote to Kean's 41%, per the same report.
Democratic gains were also reported elsewhere in the state. A separate account from NorthJersey described Democrats flipping seats in 11 Bergen County towns, including some the outlet characterized as strongly Republican.
