Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill will win the race for governor in New Jersey, NCS’s Decision Desk projects, sustaining Democratic management of the seat one yr after the state confirmed indicators of shifting towards President Donald Trump.
Sherrill, who will be the primary feminine Democratic governor within the state’s historical past, defeated Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli, a former state assemblyman and Trump ally making his third run for governor. She is ready to comply with the term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, marking the primary time a celebration has held the governor’s workplace in New Jersey for greater than two full consecutive phrases within the final 50 years.
Sherrill’s victory doubtless will be seen as a repudiation of Trump’s first yr in workplace and demonstrates the Democratic Party’s endurance in New Jersey even because it rebuilds on the nationwide degree.
Sherrill put opposition to Trump and his agenda on the middle of her marketing campaign messaging, typically linking Ciattarelli to the Republican president. She hewed to reasonable insurance policies and prioritized cost-of-living issues, together with rolling out plans to deal with skyrocketing utility costs within the state.
Her win comes a yr after Trump made vital positive factors within the state within the 2024 election. Trump misplaced New Jersey by 6 factors to former Vice President Kamala Harris however decreased his margin of defeat by 10 factors in contrast with 2020.
Sherrill, a 53-year-old lawyer and mom of 4, was first elected to Congress in 2018 as a part of a blue wave in Trump’s first time period in workplace. A former Navy helicopter pilot, Sherrill featured her navy expertise in her marketing campaign ads, saying in a single TV spot, “I know the world feels like it is on fire right now, but I was trained in the Navy that in a crisis, you run to the fight.”
Ciattarelli, in the meantime, sought to tie Sherrill to the outgoing Democratic administration in Trenton, which he blamed for prime power prices, and to progressive Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor in New York City. Ciattarelli, a former critic of Trump, embraced the president all through a lot of his marketing campaign, saying in one debate that Trump’s second-term efficiency deserved an “A” grade.
Sherrill held a slight edge in public polling over Ciattarelli for many of the marketing campaign.
In the ultimate stretch, the candidates traded more and more private and heated assaults.
Ciattarelli amplified a story about Sherrill not strolling at her commencement from the Naval Academy as punishment related to an enormous dishonest scandal, prompting the New Jersey Democrat to defend her navy service. Sherrill’s unredacted navy data had been additionally mistakenly launched by a department of the National Archives, prompting requires investigations from her Democratic allies.
In their ultimate debate, Sherrill tried in charge Ciattarelli for “tens of thousands” of opioid deaths in New Jersey, arguing that his medical publishing firm produced supplies deceptive individuals concerning the dangers of opioid abuse. Ciattarelli’s marketing campaign strongly pushed again on the declare, at one level threatening to sue Sherrill.
Outside Democratic and Republican teams poured hundreds of thousands of {dollars} into the race, making it the costliest gubernatorial contest in New Jersey historical past. High-profile surrogates campaigned for the candidates within the ultimate stretch.
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