NJ’s blue wall may be cracking in governor race, new poll shows — GOP hopeful racks up Democrat endorsements



In the fiercely competitive race for New Jersey governor, just one point separates the Democratic and Republican candidates, a new poll shows.

Mikie Sherrill (D), a current U.S. representative, held a narrow lead against Jack Ciattarelli (R), a former New Jersey state representative, in an October 27 co/efficient poll. Males, individuals ages 55 and older, and those with no party affiliation preferred Ciattarelli, while females and those ages 18 to 54 favored Sherrill, according to the recent survey.

'Why would anyone vote for New Jersey and Virginia Gubernatorial Candidates, Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger, when they want transgender for everybody, men playing in women’s sports, High Crime, and the most expensive Energy prices almost anywhere in the World?'

Separate poll results from Emerson College, dated September 25, gave Ciattarelli the best odds, showing the two candidates tied.

All other polls gave Sherrill a more substantial lead over Ciattarelli, ranging from one to seven points, with the RealClearPolitics poll average showing her 3.8 points ahead of her Republican rival.

By Sunday, roughly 90,500 New Jersey residents had returned their early-voter ballots, according to Newsweek. Of those turned in, 38,039 were from registered Democrats, 35,512 were from Republicans, and another 16,895 ballots belonged to those with other party affiliations.

Only New Jersey and Virginia are holding gubernatorial races this year.

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Mikie Sherrill. Photo by Matthew Hatcher/Getty Images

President Donald Trump has weighed in on these races, stating Sunday in a post on Truth Social, “Why would anyone vote for New Jersey and Virginia Gubernatorial Candidates, Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger, when they want transgender for everybody, men playing in women’s sports, High Crime, and the most expensive Energy prices almost anywhere in the World? VOTE REPUBLICAN for massive Energy Cost reductions, large scale Tax Cuts, and basic Common Sense!”

Trump endorsed Ciattarelli in May, calling him “a terrific America First Candidate.”

While New Jersey has traditionally been a blue stronghold, Ciattarelli has grabbed at least eight endorsements from local Democrats, according to the New York Post.

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Jack Ciattarelli. Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

On Saturday, New Era Democrats President Celia Iervasi stated, “We are proud to endorse Jack Ciattarelli for Governor of New Jersey.”

“As life continues to become unaffordable for the working class and New Jersey continues to be one of the highest taxed states in the country, Jack is the right person that is needed to make life more affordable for the residents of the Garden State,” Iervasi said. “We look forward to joining a coalition of organizations that are supporting Jack in the upcoming election and know that he is the right person to lead New Jersey in the right direction.”

Other New Jersey Democrats to support Ciattarelli include North Bergen Mayor Nick Sacco, North Bergen Commissioner Allen Pascual, Dover Mayor Jim Dodd, Branchville Mayor Anthony Frato, Branchville Councilman Jeff Lewis, and former Hudson County Democratic Organization Chair Anthony Vainieri. Garfield Mayor Everett Garnto also endorsed Ciattarelli and, at the same time, announced he was leaving the Democratic Party to switch to the GOP.

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New poll finds stunning shift in New Jersey governor's race



A new poll finds that the race to the governor's office in New Jersey is in a dead heat between the Republican and Democratic candidates.

The Emerson College poll found that 43% of respondents said they would vote for Republican Jack Ciattarelli, and the same percentage said they support Democrat Mikie Sherrill. The office is being vacated by Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, who is being termed out after serving eight years.

'The major issue overwhelmingly guiding voters was the economy.'

Every prior poll in the race showed Sherrill ahead of Ciattarelli, who is a former assemblyman. The survey of 935 self-reported likely voters also found that 11% of respondents were undecided, and 3% said they were going to vote for a different candidate.

Spencer Kimball, the executive director of the poll, said that both candidates were trying to tie their opponents to politicians unpopular in New Jersey.

"Both President Trump and Governor Murphy are underwater among Jersey voters," Kimball said. "Sherrill is trying to tie Ciattarelli to Trump at the national level, and Ciattarelli is trying to tie Sherrill to Murphy and the cost of living at the state level."

The poll found that Murphy had a net approval rating of -9%, while Trump had a net rating of -10%. Overall, however, 41% of voters approved of Trump, while only 35% approved of Murphy.

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The major issue overwhelmingly guiding voters is the economy, according to 54% of respondents in the poll. The next important issue, threats to democracy, was reported by only 13% of respondents.

Emerson College polling is considered very reliable by the Media Bias/Fact Check website, which found that it had only a minor bias to the left.

A Quinnipiac poll showed Sherill beating Ciattarelli by 8%.

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