Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill is projected to be the next governor of New Jersey in a race that narrowed in the final stretch, but in the end, it was not even close.
It served as a second hit for President Donald Trump on Tuesday night as he desperately went to bat for the Republican ticket in the final stretch, but it was not enough to flip the blue state.
Voters heading to the polls were tasked with choosing who would replace outgoing Democratic Governor Phil Murphy, as well as casting their votes in a series of down-ballot races.
Sherrill was up against Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli at the top of the ticket.
As the race was called, a massive cheer went up at Sherrill’s election night watch party in East Brunswick, New Jersey.
Her victory marks the first time in more than 60 years that a political party has been able to win a gubernatorial race in three consecutive elections.
“This was a tough fight, and this is a tough state, but I know you New Jersey, and I love you,” she said. “Serving you is worth any tough fight I have to take on, and I am incredibly honored to be your next governor.”
During her speech, she accused the president of withholding food assistance and access to health care and said her state would fight for a different future.
“Here in New Jersey, we know that this nation has not ever been nor will it ever be ruled by kings,” she said in a veiled dig. “We take oaths to a constitution, not a king.”
The Democratic congresswoman has been representing New Jersey’s 11th congressional district since 2019. She is also a former naval officer and federal prosecutor.
Ciattarelli is a businessman and former member of the New Jersey General Assembly.
This is his third time losing the race for governor after he lost the GOP primary in 2017 before running a close race against Murphy in 2021.
However, Murphy, like Trump, is underwater with New Jersey voters as he finishes up his term.
Sherrill worked tirelessly to tie Ciattarelli to Trump, having won her congressional seat as part of the anti-Trump wave in 2018. She also zeroed in on affordability in the increasingly expensive state.
CNN exit polling from the state on Tuesday found taxes and the economy were the top issues for New Jersey voters, beating out immigration, crime, and health care.
Roughly 7 in 10 voters say that property tax rates are a major problem where they live, while approximately 6 in 10 said the same of electricity costs. The rising cost of energy was one of the issues Trump raised while encouraging followers on social media to turn out for Republicans, but he did not say how he would address it.
Trump endorsed Ciattarelli in the race but never campaigned with him in person, despite the president regularly traveling to his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. On Monday night, Trump also held a tele-rally to turn out GOP support in the state.
For his part, Ciattarelli celebrated the passage of Trump’s tax bill over the summer and embraced some MAGA anti-immigration messaging.
In a frantic social media post at 5:30 pm ET on Tuesday, Trump wrote that there was still time to get out and vote in the state and touted his Ciattarelli endorsement.
“I am asking ALL PATRIOTIC CITIZENS OF THE GREAT STATE OF NEW JERSEY, including all Kollel and Yeshiva students who haven’t voted yet, to please GET OUT AND VOTE FOR JACK CIATTARELLI,” Trump wrote. “You can win this Election for Jack!”
Recent polls leading up to Election day showed Sherrill with a slight edge in the largely blue state, but the race had tightened some.
Former President Barack Obama hit the campaign trail with Sherrill over the weekend.
However, the last Republican to win the governor’s race in New Jersey was Chris Christie with his reelection in 2013.
In an unusual twist, New Jersey has also made history by electing the state’s first male lieutenant governor. Sherrill had Centenary University President Dale Caldwell as her running mate.
The office of lieutenant governor in New Jersey was only established in 2010, and every person elected to the post to date has been a woman, but Caldwell is about to change that.
