DemDaily: New Jersey Gubernatorial: Sherrill v. Ciattarelli
June 11, 2025
The high-stakes general election for New Jersey governor has begun, with Democratic Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill and former Republican State Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli emerging as victors in yesterday's primary.
New Jersey is holding one of only two gubernatorial races in 2025, along with Virginia. Both are closely watched as bellwethers for the mood of the electorate as both parties navigate the first year of Donald Trump's second term in the White House.
The winner of the general election will succeed Democratic Governor Phil Murphy, who is term-limited.
| A Democratic stronghold, New Jersey hasn't voted for a Republican presidential candidate since George HW Bush in 1988, and the GOP has not won a statewide election since Chris Christie’s 2013 gubernatorial victory. Republicans are still looking to New Jersey as a possible pickup, buoyed by recent, more competitive election results. Murphy was re-elected in 2021 by 3.2 points, down from his 14.1-point victory in 2017, and Kamala Harris's 2024 5.9-point win was ten points down from Joe Biden's 2020 statewide margin. |
Sherrill, a former US Navy helicopter pilot, attorney, and federal prosecutor, came to Congress in 2018 after flipping the long-held GOP 11th Congressional district in northern New Jersey.
She defeated five other prominent contenders, winning the Democratic nomination with 34% of the vote.
Her next closest competitor, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, garnered 24.01%, followed by Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop with 15.09%, Congressman Josh Gottheimer (11.8%), New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) President Sean Spiller (10.7%) and former State Senate President Steve Sweeney (7.2%).
Sherrill, the only woman in the race, maintained a consistent lead in polling and amassed the endorsement of most county Democratic parties in a state renowned for its Machine politics.
Ironically, Garden Staters voted under the new "office block" ballot design signed into law by Murphy last year after a US District Court judge ruled the state's county-line system -- where candidates endorsed by the county political parties appear together -- was "likely unconstitutional."
Sherrill also proved a prolific fundraiser in what is already the most expensive gubernatorial race in New Jersey history, with $54.9 million spent by both Democratic and Republican campaigns and $67.7 million by outside groups.
In direct spending by the candidates, Fulop and Sherrill led the pack, with nearly $8.7 million and $8.5 million, respectively, as of May 27. Josh Gottheimer spent $7.9 million and Sweeney $7.2 million.
While Spiller’s campaign spent only $342,059, he benefited the most from satellite spending, with Working New Jersey, a super PC linked to NJEA, spending at least $37.5 million to boost his candidacy. Independent expenditure groups spent a combined $11.6 million on Gottheimer, $6.8 million on Fulop, $4.3 million on Sweeney, and One Giant Leap PAC, which supported Sherrill, spent nearly $3.8 million.
Ciattarelli, who was endorsed by Trump May 12, easily won the GOP nomination with 67.9% of the vote. Former radio host Bill Spadea was a distant second at 21.8%, followed by State Senator Jon Bramnick (6.2%), former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac (2.7%) and contractor Justin Barbera 1.4%).
A former Hunterdon County State Assemblyman, 2017 gubernatorial primary candidate and 2021 Republican nominee for governor, Ciattarelli is a wealthy businessman and founder of several publishing and marketing companies who narrowly lost 48.0%- 51.2% to Murphy in 2021.
While Ciattarelli kept an arms-length from Trump in 2021, he has embraced the endorsement in 2025, thanking “our most well-known part-time resident" in his acceptance speech. Trump owns the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey. It ensures that the Garden State’s off-cycle gubernatorial election will be a test of the MAGA movement in a state that leans blue.
Ciattarelli's campaign spent over $8 million in the primary, and outside group Kitchen Table Conservatives, spearheaded by former Trump Senior White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway, spent $1.4 million in support of his candidacy.
| A May 28-30, 2025 SurveyUSA poll sponsored by Democrats for Education Reform, which supports Sherrill, showed Sherrill leading Ciattarelli 51%-38% among likely voters (MOE: ±6.1%). |
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Sources: CNN, New York Times, New Jersey Spotlight, NBC, New Jersey Monitor, New Jersey Globe, Politico
