New Jersey’s gubernatorial race is heating up faster than a diner grill on a busy Sunday morning.
Fox News reported that Democratic candidate Rep. Mikie Sherrill is pulling out all the stops with star-studded endorsements and events. At the same time, Republican Jack Ciattarelli narrows the gap in a contest to replace term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy, seen as a key indicator for next year’s midterm battles.
Let’s start with the big news: Former President Barack Obama threw his weight behind Sherrill last Friday, a move that’s got Democrats buzzing.
While some might see this as a golden ticket, others could argue it’s a reminder of past policies that didn’t always resonate with Jersey’s working class.
On Saturday morning, Sherrill rallied with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in Paramus, hoping to energize the base. Later that day, she joined DNC Chair Ken Martin in Montclair for a “No Kings” event, part of a national push against President Donald Trump’s second-term plans.
Sunday brings more action, with Sherrill hosting a policy roundtable in Newark alongside Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.
Baraka, a former Democratic contender for governor, isn’t without baggage—earlier this year, he was arrested for trespassing during a protest at an ICE facility in Newark. Add to that past accusations of fostering toxic workplaces for women, and Sherrill’s choice of company raises a few eyebrows.
After the roundtable, Sherrill and Moore will hit the streets of Newark to canvass, before she caps the weekend at an Oktoberfest celebration in Hamilton. It’s a packed schedule, no doubt, but in a state where governors often come from the party not in the White House, Sherrill’s got history on her side—this year, that trend favors Democrats.
Yet, the race isn’t a slam dunk, as a Fox News survey released Thursday shows Sherrill leading Ciattarelli 50-45% among likely voters, down from a wider margin just weeks ago.
That’s within the poll’s margin of error, folks—basically a coin toss. With New Jersey voters historically avoiding three consecutive terms for the same party’s governors, Ciattarelli might just have a statistical edge waiting to be claimed.
The campaign’s final weeks have turned downright hostile, with both candidates trading sharp jabs. During last week’s second and final debate, Sherrill accused Ciattarelli of cozying up to Trump, pointing out that the former president dubbed him “100% MAGA.”
“Shown zero signs of standing up to this president,” Sherrill said, doubling down on her critique. “In fact, the president himself called Jack 100% MAGA, and he’s shown every sign of being that.”
While her words aim to paint Ciattarelli as a Trump puppet, it’s worth asking if Jersey voters see loyalty to a popular figure as a flaw—or a feature.
Ciattarelli, running for governor a third time after a narrow loss to Murphy four years ago, didn’t shy away from the label, calling himself “part of a New Jersey movement.”
It’s a clever sidestep, framing his campaign as homegrown rather than a national talking point. Still, with Trump set to hold tele-rallies alongside Ciattarelli, as confirmed by multiple sources, that Jersey-first narrative might be harder to sell.
Trump’s influence is undeniable, even off the ballot, especially after canceling billions in federal funding for the Gateway Project—a vital train tunnel linking New Jersey and New York.
Sherrill seized on this, holding a news conference Thursday at a commuter rail station near the project site, calling it “critical.” Fair point, but infrastructure woes aren’t exactly a new complaint in this state.
Then there’s the mudslinging—Sherrill accused Ciattarelli of complicity in opioid deaths over his medical publishing company’s past promotion of painkillers as low-risk.
Ciattarelli, meanwhile, has allies who received improperly redacted military records of Sherrill, revealing a 1994 cheating scandal that barred her from her Naval Academy graduation. Both sides are playing hardball, but do these personal attacks distract from real policy debates?
