Mikie Sherrill wins in New Jersey, defeating Jack Ciattarelli

UNION TOWNSHIP, N.J. — Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill won the race for New Jersey governor late Tuesday, beating back a challenge from Republican Jack Ciattarelli in a race that pivoted on President Trump and high costs in the Garden State.

The Associated Press called the race with Ms. Sherrill enjoying nearly 57% of the vote and Mr. Ciattarelli at 43%, with a majority of the vote tallied. 

CNN and Fox News also called the race for Ms. Sherrill, drawing cheers from Ms. Sherrill’s base in East Brunswick.

Her victory will extend the Democrats’ reign at the governor’s mansion in Trenton, where Gov. Phil Murphy is finishing his second term. 

“I am incredibly honored to be your next governor,” Ms. Sherrill said in her victory speech. “Governors have never mattered more, and in this state, I am determined to build prosperity for all of our citizens.”

Ms. Sherrill is the second female governor of New Jersey and the first since Christine Todd Whitman, a Republican, left office in 2001.

The likely comfortable margin lets Democrats breathe a sigh of relief as they build momentum for next year’s mid-term elections and combat GOP efforts to turn New Jersey into a battleground state.

Ms. Sherill is a 53-year-old former Navy pilot who began her House tenure in 2019. She held a polling lead throughout the campaign. 

Yet the low-single-digit polling edge seemed thin for a Democratic candidate in a state that last elected a Republican senator in 1972 and has had Democratic control of both legislative houses since 2001.

New Jersey, a state of roughly 9.5 million people, is considered reliably blue. But Republicans have been knocking at the gate in recent cycles. 

Vice President Kamala Harris won the state by fewer than six percentage points in her 2024 nationwide loss to Mr. Trump, compared to a nearly 16-point victory for President Joseph R. Biden in 2020.

Mr. Ciattarelli, a business owner and former state assemblyman, fell short in the 2021 race by only three points.

The New Jersey contest was one of a handful of major races, alongside the Virginia governor’s race and New York City mayoral contest, on Tuesday that tested the nation’s political temperature nearly one year into Mr. Trump’s second term. 

All were won by Democrats.

The party shook off its doldrums after bruising losses last November by tapping into economic concerns and anti-Trump sentiment.

“I don’t want anybody who is representing Trump — or for Trump — to be in office again,” Thomas Ashie, 23, said after casting his ballot for Ms. Sherrill at Franklin Elementary School in Union Township. “Anybody who’s with Trump, I’m against.”

Some Sherrill voters worried a GOP administration in Trenton would cut state government payroll or school funding.

The GOP had hoped to add to its 2024 gains and prove that Mr. Trump’s agenda could drive voter enthusiasm, even in Democratic strongholds.

“New Jersey is such a great state, but it’s suffered too long under crap leadership,” Vice President J.D. Vance wrote on X in support of Mr. Ciattarelli.

During the campaign, Ms. Sherrill played up her resume in the military and pledged to declare a state of emergency around utility costs to end rate increases.

She stirred enthusiasm among her base by campaigning with former President Barack Obama in the waning days of the race.

On Election Day, Ms. Sherrill stumped for votes at the diner and coffee shop in her hometown of Montclair, hoping to turn out Democrats who outnumber registered Republicans by over 800,000 in the Garden State.

Mr. Ciattarelli attacked Ms. Sherrill on the airwaves as being overly concerned about Mr. Trump instead of state and local issues, such as high property taxes and electric bills. One prominent ad showed Ms. Sherrill struggling in a television interview to name her top legislative priority.

Mr. Ciattarelli vowed to work with immigration enforcement, saying New Jersey would not be a “sanctuary state,” and said he would withdraw from climate-friendly agreements that increased energy costs.

Natacha Simoes, 35, said she opted for Mr. Ciattarelli because of his emphasis on parental choice when it comes to things like vaccination.

“Because I have kids, that is something that is important, and being able to be in charge,” she said at the Union voting site. “Versus, you know, mandating those things. Not that they aren’t important – I think they are – but I also think we should have the freedom to choose.”

Ultimately, Ms. Sherrill’s message won out as part of a wave of Democratic wins in key races.

“Tonight, Donald Trump and Jack Ciattarelli learned the hard way that there are consequences for betraying working families,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said. “Governor-elect Sherrill’s victory, along with Abigail Spanberger’s victory earlier tonight in Virginia, is the beginning of our Democratic resurgence.”

Bomb threats to polling places in seven counties marred voting early on Tuesday.

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said law enforcement responded to the threats and secured each location.

The threats were sent by email. Some of the polling sites were quickly reopened, while some voters were told to go to nearby polling sites to cast their ballots.

Ms. Sherrill called it “an attempt to suppress the vote here.”