Of the 2,026 households, 25.3% had children under the age of 18; 47.0% were married couples living together; 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 33.6% were non-families. Of all households, 27.3% were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.11.[19]
20.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 29.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.1 years. For every 100 females, the population had 97.5 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 96.4 males.[19]
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010
American Community Survey showed that (in 2010
inflation-adjusted dollars)
median household income was $60,991 (with a margin of error of +/− $10,116) and the median family income was $71,862 (+/− $7,180). Males had a median income of $46,132 (+/− $3,220) versus $32,287 (+/− $3,698) for females. The
per capita income for the borough was $26,221 (+/− $2,206). About 2.2% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.[31]
2000 census
As of the
2000 U.S. census,[16] there were 5,192 people, 2,068 households, and 1,379 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,778.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,459.0/km2). There were 2,168 housing units at an average density of 1,577.9 per square mile (609.2/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 75.35%
White, 17.66%
African American, 0.21%
Native American, 3.24%
Asian, 0.02%
Pacific Islander, 1.08% from
other races, and 2.45% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 3.89% of the population.[29][30]
There were 2,068 households, out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were
married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.3% were non-families. 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.11.[29][30]
The population in Somerdale was spread out, with 22.3% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males.[29][30]
The median income for a household in the borough was $46,898, and the median income for a family was $54,200. Males had a median income of $37,008 versus $31,237 for females. The
per capita income for the borough was $21,259. About 6.4% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.[29][30]
Government
Local government
Somerdale is governed under the
borough form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 218 (of the 564) municipalities in the state, making it the most common form of government in New Jersey.[32] The governing body is comprised of the mayor and the borough council, with all positions elected
at-large on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. A mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The borough council is comprised of six members, who are elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year in a three-year cycle.[6] The borough form of government used by Somerdale is a "
weak mayor / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can
veto ordinances subject to an
override by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and most appointments are made by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council.[33][34][35]
As of 2023[update], the mayor of Somerdale is
Democrat Gary J. Passanante, whose term of office ends December 31, 2023. Members of the Borough Council are Council President George Badey (D, 2024), David A. Alexander (D, 2025), George C. Ehrmann (D, 2024), Barbara Kane (D, 2025), James J. Perry (D, 2023) and Lawrence R. "Larry" Sefchick (D, 2023).[3][36][37][38][39][40]
Federal, state, and county representation
Somerdale is located in the 1st Congressional District[41] and is part of New Jersey's 6th state legislative district.[42][43][44]
Camden County is governed by a
Board of County Commissioners composed of seven members chosen
at-large in partisan elections for three-year terms on a staggered basis by the residents of the county, with either two or three seats up for election each year as part of the November general election. At a reorganization meeting held in January after each election, the newly constituted Board of Commissioners selects one member to serve as Director and another as Deputy Director, each serving a one-year term in that role.[51] As of 2024[update], Camden County's Commissioners are:
Commissioner Director Louis Cappelli Jr. (
D,
Collingswood, 2026),[52]
Commissioner Deputy Director Edward T. McDonnell (D,
Pennsauken Township, 2025),[53]
Virginia Ruiz Betteridge (D,
Runnemede, 2025),[54]
Almar Dyer (D, Pennsauken Township, 2024),[55]
Melinda Kane (D,
Cherry Hill, 2024),[56]
Jeffrey L. Nash (D,
Winslow Township, 2024),[57] and
Jonathan L. Young Sr. (D,
Berlin Township, 2026).[58][51][59][60][61]
As of March 2011, there were a total of 3,457 registered voters in Somerdale, of which 1,919 (55.5%) were registered as
Democrats, 318 (9.2%) were registered as
Republicans and 1,215 (35.1%) were registered as
Unaffiliated. There were 5 voters registered as
Libertarians or
Greens.[69]
In the
2012 presidential election, Democrat
Barack Obama received 72.4% of the vote (1,718 cast), ahead of Republican
Mitt Romney with 26.8% (635 votes), and other candidates with 0.8% (19 votes), among the 2,383 ballots cast by the borough's 3,747 registered voters (11 ballots were
spoiled), for a turnout of 63.6%.[70][71] In the
2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 68.3% of the vote (1,758 cast), ahead of Republican
John McCain, who received around 28.5% (734 votes), with 2,573 ballots cast among the borough's 3,437 registered voters, for a turnout of 74.9%.[72] In the
2004 presidential election, Democrat
John Kerry received 65.2% of the vote (1,653 ballots cast), outpolling Republican
George W. Bush, who received around 33.0% (836 votes), with 2,535 ballots cast among the borough's 3,444 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 73.6.[73]
In the
2013 gubernatorial election, Republican
Chris Christie received 49.2% of the vote (606 cast), ahead of Democrat
Barbara Buono with 49.1% (604 votes), and other candidates with 1.7% (21 votes), among the 1,259 ballots cast by the borough's 3,753 registered voters (28 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 33.5%.[74][75] In the
2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat
Jon Corzine received 58.8% of the vote (842 ballots cast), ahead of both Republican
Chris Christie with 33.6% (481 votes) and Independent
Chris Daggett with 4.8% (69 votes), with 1,433 ballots cast among the borough's 3,469 registered voters, yielding a 41.3% turnout.[76]
For
ninth grade through
twelfth grade, public school students attend
Sterling High School, a regional high school district that also serves students from
Magnolia and
Stratford, along with the sending districts of
Hi-Nella and
Laurel Springs.[80][81] The high school is located in Somerdale. As of the 2020–21 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 912 students and 69.0 classroom teachers (on an
FTE basis), for a
student–teacher ratio of 13.2:1.[82] Seats on the district's board of education are allocated based on the population of the constituent municipalities, with three seats assigned to Somerdale.[83]
Our Lady of Grace was a K–8 elementary school that operated under the auspices of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden. As part of the reorganization by the Camden Diocese, Our Lady of Grace School and the associated church were both closed, after a November 2009 announcement from the Camden Diocese that the Somerdale church would be one of three churches that would be closed and combined to create Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Lindenwold.[84]
Transportation
Roads and highways
As of May 2010[update], the borough had a total of 24.21 miles (38.96 km) of roadways, of which 19.46 miles (31.32 km) were maintained by the municipality, 3.52 miles (5.66 km) by Camden County and 1.23 miles (1.98 km) by the
New Jersey Department of Transportation.[85]
^Full Biography, Congressman Donald Norcross. Accessed January 3, 2019. "Donald and his wife Andrea live in Camden City and are the proud parents of three grown children and grandparents of two."
^Biography of Bob Menendez,
United States Senate, January 26, 2015. "Menendez, who started his political career in Union City, moved in September from Paramus to one of Harrison's new apartment buildings near the town's PATH station.."
^Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Somerdale School District. Accessed August 3, 2022. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through eight in the Somerdale School District. Composition: The Somerdale School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Somerdale."
^Sterling High School 2015 Report Card Narrative,
New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 2, 2016. "Sterling High School District is a regional district serving Hi Nella, Laurel Springs, Magnolia, Somerdale and Stratford. Sterling is a suburban residential community, approximately 7 miles southeast of Camden, NJ and part of the Philadelphia, PA metropolitan area."
^Annual Comprehensive Financial Report For the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2011, Sterling High School District. Accessed December 8, 2014. "The purpose of the School District is to provide educational services for resident students in grades 9 through 12 that reside in the Borough's of Magnolia, Somerdale and Stratford. In addition, the School District provides educational services for students in grades 9 through 12 received, on a tuition basis, from the Laurel Springs School District and the Hi-Nella School District."
^Staff.
"Diocese of Camden Parish Planning Timeline", Catholic Star Herald, November 19, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2013. "November 6, 2009: Bishop Joseph Galante formally decrees that the parishes of Saint Luke (Stratford), St. Lawrence (Lindenwold) and Our Lady of Grace (Somerdale), will merge and the new parish resulting from the merger, Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, will be established December 9, 2009."
^Goldaper, Sam.
"Nets Want Dawkins For Skill, Not Flare", The New York Times, August 29, 1982. Accessed September 22, 2019. "Bob MacKinnon, the Nets' general manager, said he was not sure that Dawkins knew of the trade. 'I sent a telegram to his home in Somerdale, New Jersey,' he said. Somerdale is a Philadelphia suburb, but Dawkins has been visiting members of his family in Orlando, Fla."
^Zac Gallen, NJ Sports Heroes. Accessed September 22, 2019. "Zachary Peter Gallen was born August 3, 1995 in Somerdale and grew up in Gibbsboro."
^Burgoon, Lauren.
"Somerdale's April Holmes to Defend Record at 2012 Paralympics; The 'world's fastest amputee' can't wait for her chance to compete.", CollingswoodPatch, September 1, 2012. Accessed November 11, 2013. "April Holmes of Somerdale, who calls herself 'the world's fastest amputee,' is ready to pad her medal count at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. Holmes, a world-record-holder in the 100, 200 and 400 meters who took gold in the 100 meter at the Beijing Paralympics, will defend her title as well as compete in the 200 meter event."
^Philadelphia Flyers 2014-15 Media Guide, p. 21. Accessed November 30, 2017. "Tim and his wife, Margie, have two children – daughter Katie and son Steven – and reside in Somerdale, New Jersey."