Written by Mike Catalini and Adriana Gomez Leeson
TRENTON, N.J., USA (AP) — U.S. Rep. Mickey Sherrill was elected New Jersey’s new governor on Tuesday, cementing Democratic control of the state that has been solidly blue in presidential and Senate races but has shown some rightward tilt in recent years.
Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot and four-term congressman, defeated Jack Ciattarelli, who had the support of President Donald Trump.
The start of voting on Tuesday was disrupted after officials in seven counties received emails containing bomb threats, which authorities later determined were unfounded, said the state’s top elections official, Lt. Gov. Tahisha Way.
A judge granted a one-hour extension at some voting centers after Democrats filed a request for three schools that received bomb threats on Tuesday.
Sherrill, 53, offers some comfort to moderates within the Democratic Party ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Sherrill, a former prosecutor and military veteran, embodies a type of centrist Democrat who seeks to appeal to some conservatives while aligning himself with some progressive causes. He campaigned against Trump and blamed his tariffs on voters’ economic concerns.
Sherrill will become the second woman to govern New Jersey, after Republican Christine Todd Whitman, who did so from 1994 to 2001. Her victory also gives Democrats three consecutive victories in New Jersey state elections, marking the first time in six decades that either major party has achieved three victories.
Ciattarelli lost his second straight election for governor after coming within a few points of defeating Phil Murphy four years ago.
New Jersey’s governor’s race, one of two this year along with Virginia, often revolves around local issues such as property taxes. But the campaign also served as a potential indicator of national sentiment, especially regarding voters’ reaction to the president’s second term and Democrats’ messaging ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
During the final weeks of his campaign, Sherrill criticized the president’s threat to cancel a project to build new rail tunnels under the Hudson River to replace those currently used for travel to and from New York City. He also promised to freeze electricity prices that had recently risen.
Sherrill takes over the governorship after serving four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. He won that seat in 2018 during Trump’s first term, flipping a district long held by the GOP in an election in which Democrats swept 11 of the state’s 12 House seats.
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This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative AI tool.