TRENTON — Incumbent Democratic Congressman Rush Holt won a third term handily last night, defeating Republican challenger Buster Soaries by a margin of more than 30,000 votes.
In the Princeton Borough 1st precinct, which includes most of the University's locally registered undergraduate voters, Holt polled 165 votes to Soaries' 48.
The mood at the Trenton Marriott, where Holt held his victory party, was jubilant last night. Supporters cheered intermittently as news of Holt's victory accumulated one precinct at a time.
"Does anyone have any local or municipal numbers? If you do, bring them up here. I'll read anything — pick six, anything — precinct by precinct," a jubilant announcer said. "In the 5th District, Rush Holt 85 votes," he shouted.
A pause. "Soaries, 34."
Political diehards, campaign donors and party officials predominated in the crowd of several hundred revelers.
"Things are certainly looking good," said Tom Byrne '76, former chairman of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee, as results began to come in shortly after 9 p.m. "I think Rush Holt is going to win big, and deserves to — he's been the best congressman you could ask for.
"I like having someone with a deep understanding of scientific and technical issues in the Congress," he added.
When Holt finally took the stage, he was greeted with a raucous locomotive — "Rush! Rush! Rush! Rush!"
"This is wonderful to see you all here," he replied, beaming. "Thank you all for your support. Reverend Soaries called me a few minutes ago and offered me his congratulations. "You all know that this is not about me, it's about you." Winning, he said, is "not an end in itself. It's about representation. Bringing the ideas from you to your government."
Holt, widely known as a cerebral politician, used his victory speech to offer substantive comments on the problems he sees facing his district and the nation.
"There is a sense of uneasiness," he said. "People worry about their financial security, about their physical security . . . there is ethnic polarization, violence, environmental degradation.
"Companies should be doing more for their employees, not just their executives," Holt said to a large cheer.
Soaries, an African-American minister, gave a televised concession speech from the hotel ballroom in East Brunswick that had been booked in advance for the occasion.
Holt, who was in the midst of his victory speech when Soaries appeared before cameras to concede defeat, did not pause for the losing candidate.
"Obviously, his loss was disappointing, but the margin was simply surprising," said Evan Baehr '05, College Republicans vice president. "Nevertheless, such a dynamic and passionate candidate as Buster Soaries shows that a conservative ideology can work on a community level. Soaries works in the community, something unique among Republican candidates."
There were a number of Princetonians in the audience to cheer on Congressman Holt, who spent 11 years as assistant director of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory before launching his political career.
"I'm from Portland, Oregon. Today, I've been working with the get out the vote efforts, just trying to increase turnout," said James Williams '05, one of several University students who volunteered for the Holt campaign in recent weeks. "Over Fall Break there were a handful [of undergraduates] that were working with the campaign office, and then today there were lots of students."
He went door to door this afternoon, visiting Democrats and urging them to vote.
"It can't hurt to remind people," he said. "I did have someone who did say, 'Thanks, I'm going to go vote just now' — and sure enough, a few minutes later, I saw him leave."
University physics professor Edward Witten GS '76, who knows Holt from his tenure as a physicist at the PPPL, said Holt's background helps him in the House.
"For one thing, it helps him understand a lot of complex issues that come before Congress, rather than just having views off the top of your head," he said.
Witten said Holt's interest in politics was clear long before he ran for Congress.
"Apart from being a professor, he was active in the community," he said. "He has a lot of networks of friends and supporters."
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