Republican Jack Ciattarelli and Democrat Mikie Sherrill won their parties’ nominations Tuesday night, setting the stage for a high-stakes New Jersey governor’s race centered on affordability, leadership style, and the lingering influence of former President Donald Trump.
The Associated Press called both contests less than 40 minutes after polls closed at 8 p.m., with Sherrill leading a six-person Democratic field and Ciattarelli topping four Republican challengers. By 8:39 p.m., Sherrill held 35.3% of the vote with 41% of precincts reporting.
Ciattarelli, 63, a former state Assembly member and the Republican nominee in 2021, claimed victory at a celebration at Bell Works in Holmdel, where supporters gathered under blue and yellow balloons with a buffet of pasta, meatballs, and spring rolls. “We won because of our positive energy,” he told the crowd. “We talked about the issues that matter — my plan for a safer, more prosperous and affordable New Jersey.”
In his speech, Ciattarelli outlined a platform focused on cutting property taxes, overhauling public education, opposing sanctuary city policies, and reducing government spending. He promised to appoint an attorney general “who supports both police and parents,” freeze seniors’ property taxes, and support school choice through educational savings accounts.
“Make no mistake — Mikie Sherrill is Phil Murphy 2.0,” he said. “A vote for her is four more years of high taxes, wasted spending, and government mandates.”
Sherrill, a 53-year-old Navy veteran, former federal prosecutor, and current U.S. Representative from Montclair, addressed supporters at the Westin Governor Morris Hotel in Morristown. “Tonight I pledge to you, we’re going to build something worthy of our state and worthy of our kids,” she said.
Drawing on Revolutionary War imagery, she framed the election as part of a national turning point: “New Jersey once again stands at the front lines,” Sherrill said. “We are in an American crisis — not in a war for independence, but a fight for our future.”
Sherrill would be the first woman elected governor of New Jersey since Republican Christine Todd Whitman in 1994. She campaigned on protecting abortion rights, lowering healthcare and prescription costs, investing in clean energy, and pushing back against what she described as the rising extremism of Trump-aligned Republicans.
“A state like this is not going to be led by a Trump lackey like Jack Ciattarelli,” she said.
Ciattarelli, who had Trump’s endorsement, responded pointedly. “If this campaign were a drinking game and you took a shot every time Mikie Sherrill says ‘Trump,’ you’re gonna be drunk off your ass every day,” he said.
The general election will be held this November — one of only two gubernatorial contests in the country this year, along with Virginia — and is expected to draw national attention as a bellwether heading into the 2026 midterm elections.
In a statement Tuesday night, outgoing Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy congratulated both candidates. “I commend Jack Ciattarelli and Mikie Sherrill for earning the trust and support of primary voters across the state,” Murphy said, adding thanks to “every candidate – on both sides of the aisle – who stepped up to run in this year’s election and participate in our sacred democratic process.”
The general election is on Nov. 4
