Joseph William Cowgill (April 24, 1908 – November 19, 1986) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Minority Leader of the New Jersey Senate.
He did not seek re-election to a second term in 1941, but instead ran for Camden County Surrogate (Probate Court Judge).
He was elected to the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders in 1952;[3] he did not seek re-election in 1955, but instead ran for an open State Senate seat when Bruce A. Wallace retired.
In a close race, Cowgill defeated Republican Haddon Township Mayor William G. Rohrer by 290 votes, 54,683 (50.02%) to 54,393 (49.76%).
In 1963, Cowgill was defeated for re-election to a third term as State Senator, losing to Republican Frederick Scholz by 13,627 votes, 72,873 (54.94%) to 59,246 (44.66%).