TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — Gov. Chris Christie took the podium before a cheering crowd Tuesday night, after being reelected handily over opponent Barbara Buono.

“Tonight, I stand here as your governor, and I am so proud to be your governor,” Christie said.

Christie noted said he took office four years ago with a mandate to “turn things upside-down” in Trenton, and “I think we’ve done just that.” He credited his administration with developing a government that worked for people rather than just taking from them, through a spirit of bipartisanship.

“I know that if we can do this in Trenton, New Jersey, maybe the folks in Washington, D.C., should turn on their TVs right now,” Christie said.

Christie said he has worked hard to cut taxes, reduce the size of government, and make changes to improve the way the government functions.

“For the next four years, we will fight to make those changes permanent, and we will fight to make them bigger,” Christie said. “I did not seek a second term to do small things. I sought a second term to finish the job. Now watch me do it.”

Christie added that just over a year ago, Superstorm Sandy changed everything, bringing people from all walks of life to work together in solidarity.

“I will govern with the spirit of Sandy,” he said.

Rival Barbara Buono on Tuesday night conceded the New Jersey gubernatorial race to incumbent Gov. Chris Christie.

With 23 percent of precincts reporting, Christie had 58 percent of the vote to Democratic state Sen. Barbara Buono’s 41 percent.

He became the first Republican in a quarter-century to receive more than 50 percent of the New Jersey vote. This, in a state that President Barack Obama carried a year ago by more than 17 points, his biggest margin in the nation.

Earlier, Buono conceded the election, saying she had called Christie to congratulate him. She thanked her campaign team and supporters for their efforts.

“Each and every one of us believed it would be worth it, and was it worth it? Yes it was,” Buono said.

WATCH: Barbara Buono Concedes N.J. Gubernatorial Election

While she began her speech by congratulating Christie, her words were not so charitable as the speech went on. She accused her fellow Democrats of making “a deal with this governor despite him representing everything they’re supposed to be against. They didn’t do it to help the state. They did it to help themselves financially and politically.”

More than once, she accused Democrats in New Jersey of “betrayal.”

She said her supporters need to go on fighting for reform.

“New Jersey represents the last vestiges old boy machine politics that used to dominate states across the nation, and unless more people are willing to challenge it, New Jersey’s national reputation will suffer among families who might otherwise move here, among businesses who otherwise might locate here, and among those qualified and honest candidates who might come here and run for office,” Buono said.

As of 8:36 p.m., with a handful of precincts reporting, Christie was shown to have received 60 percent of the vote, compared with 38 percent of Buono and 1 percent for Independent Kenneth Kaplan. Other candidates registered fractions 1 percent.

As CBS 2’s Christine Sloan reported, Christie campaign headquarters was crowded with people at 8:35 p.m., and a line was forming so supporters could get in. The governor was expected to speak sometime before 10 p.m.

Christie, 51, was already popular when Superstorm Sandy slammed into the coast a year ago, damaging 360,000 homes and businesses, plunging 5.5 million people into darkness and disrupting gasoline supplies for days.

His popularity skyrocketed as he donned a blue fleece pullover and led the state through its worst natural disaster, whether he was embracing President Barack Obama during a visit to the battered coast or consoling a tearful 9-year-old who had lost her house.

Christie underwent weight-loss surgery in February and has been shedding pounds steadily since, addressing a health issue that could affect his political plans in the future. He was disqualified as a 2012 vice presidential candidate after refusing to answer questions about his health and other matters, according to a new book on last year’s presidential campaign.

Christie has refused to rule out a presidential run, which may mean he could resign before his second term ended.

Nearly half of New Jersey residents think he’ll run, according to a recent poll.

Buono, 60, portrayed Christie’s ambitions as a negative. In an interview on MSNBC on Monday, she said the governor is putting his personal ambitions ahead of the needs of the state.

Buono also challenged Christie on gay marriage, which she supported and he opposed before it became legal in New Jersey last month. She criticized Christie’s budget priorities — refusing to reinstate a surcharge on millionaires while trimming a property tax credit for the working poor, for example — and his veto of legislation raising the minimum-wage.

Though a majority of New Jersey residents said they agreed with Buono on social issues, she has been unable to get out from a campaign Catch-22: She couldn’t get her message out because she hadn’t raised a lot of money for advertising, and she had trouble raising money because voters didn’t know her.

Democrats, including Buono, rejected Christie’s minimum-wage compromise of scaling back an increase and phasing it in over three years, and instead decided to put the question to voters.

As CBS 2’s Sloan reported, many residents observed earlier that voter turnout seemed to be low at their polling sites.

“It doesn’t seem that busy in there,” said John Czarnecki of Westfield. “It seems more crowded in the parking lot than it is in there.”

Polling places were reported as being practically empty across New Jersey. Many were disappointed, because not only were Garden State voters choosing a governor, but they were also picking legislators and asking several ballot questions – including whether to raise the state’s minimum wage.

“There has been a lot of talking that not voting is making a statement, but pretty much inactivity and laziness,” said Lauren Debiac of Ridgewood. “And it is important that if you don’t fully back either of the candidates, to go out and vote on public issues.”

Some voters said the outcome of the election was a foregone conclusion.

“(Christie) is going to win,” said Phyllis Whelan of Ridgewood. “Maybe that is why people aren’t voting, because they know he is going to win.”

But Buono supporters said the polls haven’t closed yet.

“I am a little anti-Christie, so I voted for Buono,” said Toni Deis of Westfield.

Christie and Buono both cast their own ballots early.

Christie and his wife cast their ballots Tuesday at a firehouse in Mendham Township. He said this is the last time he’ll be running for elected office in New Jersey. By law, Christie can’t seek a third term.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever have another chance to vote for myself,” he said. “I won’t ever run for another office in New Jersey, I can guarantee that. This is it for me.”

PHOTOS: Election Day 2013

Buono and her husband voted earlier Tuesday morning at a school gymnasium in Metuchen. She said she believes she has made up ground in the last few weeks and that Democrats will turn out for her.

LINK: NJ Division Of Elections

Polls leading up to Election Day showed Christie with a 20-plus point advantage as he pushes for a landslide to burnish his bipartisan credentials and show how well a reach-across-the-aisle Republican can do in a Democratic-leaning state.

Buono campaigned without the aid of big-name Democrats. She also was spurned early on by Democratic leaders who control party politics in the state.

They have a good working relationship with Christie and didn’t believe the progressive from Metuchen could win.

WEB EXTRA: Watch Chris Christie, Barbara Buono Debate

Buono’s herself said her own party abandoned her forging deals with Christie.

Political analyst Peter Woolley of Farleigh Dickinson University said a low voter turnout is good for Christie.

“The low voter turnout is really the function of Democrats not turning out in counties and places they should be to give the Democrats their natural advantage,” he said.

New Jersey voters were also asked in ballot question No. 2 to increase the minimum wage by $1, to $8.25 per hour, and to allow annual cost-of-living increases based on inflation. They’ll also be asked to allow veterans’ groups to use proceeds from games of chance to run their organizations.

Voters also chose their legislative representatives. Democrats now control both the Senate and Assembly with all 120 seats up for election.

You may also be interested in these stories: 

• Christie: ‘I Will Govern With The Spirit Of Sandy’
• De Blasio Declared Winner Of NYC Mayoral Race; Lhota Concedes
• Democrats Retake Mayor’s Office In Stamford, Conn.
• Toni Harp Elected First New Mayor Of New Haven In 20 Years

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)