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Article snippet: ASBURY PARK, N.J. — New Jersey became the seventh state in the country where Democrats now control the legislative and executive branches with the election on Tuesday of Philip D. Murphy, a former Wall Street banker with no experience in office, as its 56th governor, according to The Associated Press. The decisive victory by Mr. Murphy, who transformed himself from a Goldman Sachs executive into a progressive Democrat to match the direction of an anxious political party, gives Democrats a badly needed lift and a governor who has vowed to make his state a bulwark against the policies of President Trump. Mr. Murphy’s ascendancy also brings an emphatic end to the tumultuous eight-year reign of Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican who was once considered a viable contender for the White House but who leaves office as one of the country’s least popular governors. Still, despite Mr. Murphy’s skillfully managed campaign and ambitious agenda, it remains to be seen whether he can deliver on his many promises. Mr. Murphy, 60, easily defeated Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, the Republican candidate and Mr. Christie’s second-in-command, by a margin of 56 to 43 percent, with 98 percent of precincts reporting, after a contentious election that never was really in doubt — Ms. Guadagno had struggled to move out of the shadow of her deeply disliked boss. Mr. Murphy, who promoted a liberal future for New Jersey with a $15 minimum wage, the legalization of marijuana and a vow to stand up to Mr... Link to the full article to read more