Election 2017: Results for Pa. and N.J. races

Polls are now closed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Voters braved a chilly rain on Tuesday to cast ballots  in an off-year election that featured a mix of state and local races, high and low.

Turnout was expected to be higher in New Jersey than in Pennsylvania because voters in the Garden State were electing a new governor to replace Chris Christie and casting ballots for all 120 seats in the Assembly and state Senate.

In Pennsylvania, the main statewide races were to elect judges to the Supreme Court, Superior Court, and Commonwealth Court and in Philadelphia the marquee contests were for District Attorney and City Controller.

Residents were also called on to elect local government and board of education officials in suburban municipalities in both states. Our voter guide has a full rundown of the races.

Turnout was steady but quiet late afternoon at United Calvary Methodist Church at the corner of 48th Street and Baltimore Avenue in West Philadelphia.

Patricia Albright, 50, said she voted for Larry Krasner for district attorney, who she also casted a ballot for during the spring primaries.

Albright said Trump's presidency "absolutely" influenced her decision to support the progressive candidate and that being able to fulfill her civic duty for yet another year was also very important to her.

At Holy Eucharist Catholic Church, a Cherry Hill polling place, turnout was brisk in the morning.

Jim Doyle, 76, did not hesitate when he cast his ballot for the successor to Christie. Doyle pushed the button for Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno.

"I'm just turned off by Murphy," said Doyle. "He's a Wall Street guy."

Doyle said he was largely pleased by the direction of President Trump's administration so far, and that he wanted to keep the momentum going.

"I think he's done a lot," said Doyle, who is retired. "He's Just having a lot of difficulty with the swamp. The opposition is not giving up – they don't like him because he's not an insider."

Things got off to a rocky start at one polling place in Philadelphia. Voters arriving to cast ballots at Ward 59, Division 17 at the Mastery Pickett Charter School in Germantown could not cast ballots because the machines were not working. Repairmen were called and they were up and working later in the morning.

Another problem emerged during the day when it emerged that Republican Commonwealth Court candidate Christine Fizzano Cannon's full name did not appear on some ballots in Philadelphia and instead was listed only as "Christine Fizzano."

Christie, who could not seek a third term, voted in Mendham and said he did not think the outcome of the race for his job between Guadagno and Democrat Phil Murphy was a referendum on his performance over the last eight years, though Murphy has sought to frame it as such,

While voters went to the polls, politicians held their regular election day gatherings at their favorite luncheon spots.

At the Famous Fourth Street Deli, another politico gathering spot, some electrician union members appeared caught in a time warp, hold giant photos of Mayor Kenney, who was on the ballot two years ago and is not up for reelection until 2019.

Around the region, officials are on stand-by to handle problems at polling places.

Polls close at 8 p.m. in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey and rain has started falling in Philadelphia.

What you need to know about the races and ballot questions in both states can be found here.

The Committee of Seventy, an independent watchdog group, in the meantime asked voters to rate their experience at the polls.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf started the morning with a get out and vote appeal.

Staff writers Kristen A. Graham and Patricia Madej contributed to this story.