1985 New Jersey gubernatorial election

Incumbent Republican Governor Thomas Kean won a landslide re-election against the Democratic candidate, Essex County Executive Peter Shapiro.

In the Democratic primary, Shapiro prevailed over strong competition from Senate President John F. Russo and Newark mayor Kenneth A. Gibson.

Kean won 564 out of 567 municipalities (all except Audubon Park, Chesilhurst, and Roosevelt)[2] and a 62% majority among African-American voters,[3] a remarkable margin for a modern Republican candidate.

[8] His efforts to aid depressed cities through Urban Enterprise Zones and reaching out to groups not typically associated with the Republicans including African Americans and labor unions led to endorsements from black ministers, Coretta Scott King,[9] the AFL–CIO, and The New York Times.

[10][11] Shapiro ran on a platform of reducing car insurance rates, the state's high property taxes, and improvement of the environment but his struggles of fundraising due to New Jersey being located in two expensive media markets (New York City and Philadelphia) and Kean's momentum left his campaign little-received.