New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep.Mikie Sherrillis pulling out all the stops in the final push ahead of Election Day, campaigning alongside Democratic Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Wes Moore of Maryland, both considered potential 2028 presidential candidates.
While the Sherrill campaign gears up for high-profile campaign collaborations, former PresidentBarack Obamaendorsed Sherrill's gubernatorial campaign on Friday.
"This November, we have an opportunity to chart a different path forward — to reject the chaos in Washington and lower costs in New Jersey — and I’m so grateful to have President Obama’s support and endorsement in this race," Sherrill said in a statement, commending Obama's leadership on healthcare amid the government shutdown as congressional Democrats seek to extend healthcare premiums set to expire this year.
Sherrill will rally with Whitmer in Paramus, New Jersey, on Saturday morning. Later, she will join Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin for a "No Kings" rally in Montclair — one of hundreds scheduled across the country in rejection of PresidentDonald Trump'ssweeping, second-term agenda.
NJ SHOWDOWN: CIATTARELLI PILES ON DEM RIVAL AFTER HEATED DEBATE WITH SCATHING NEW ADS
On Sunday, Sherrill will host a policy roundtable with Moore and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. Baraka was one of several Democratic candidates who competed for the New Jersey gubernatorial nomination earlier this year.
Baraka made national headlines during his campaign when he was arrested fortrespassing at Delaney Hall, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holding facility in Newark, while protesting earlier this year. He was later accused of fosteringtoxic work environments for women.
After the policy roundtable on Sunday, Sherrill and Moore will canvass in Newark before she attends an Oktoberfest event in Hamilton later that day.
AFox News survey releasedThursday found Sherill ahead of her Republican opponent Jack Ciattarelli by 5 points among New Jersey likely voters (50-45%), down from an 8-point lead in late September (50-42%). As the race to replace Gov. Phil Murphy, who is term-limited in the Garden State this year, Sherrill's edge has tightened over Ciattarelli, within the poll’s margin of sampling error.
New Jerseyis one of two statewide elections in the U.S. this year and will be considered a bellwether ahead of competitive midterm elections expected next year.
The race for the Garden State's highest office has become increasingly hostile between Sherrill and Ciattarelli in the final weeks ahead of Election Day. And while Trump isn't on the ballot, he's loomed large over the New Jersey gubernatorial election.
At last week's second and final debate, Sherrill charged that her GOP rival had "shown zero signs of standing up to this president. In fact, the president himself called Jack 100% MAGA, and he's shown every sign of being that."
Asked whether he considered himselfpart of the MAGA movement, Ciattarelli said he was "part of a New Jersey movement."
When asked to grade the president's performance so far during his second term, Ciattarelli said, "I'd certainly give the president an A. I think he's right about everything that he's doing."
"I think that tells us all we need to know about who Jack Ciattarelli's supporting. I give him an F right now," Sherrill responded, as she pointed to New Jersey's high cost of living.
While Democrats have long dominated federal and state legislative elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are very competitive in gubernatorial contests, winning five out of the past ten elections.
And Trump made major gains in New Jersey in last year's presidential election, losing the state by only 6 percentage points, an improvement over his 16-point deficit four years earlier.
Sherrill's news conference came the day after multiple sources confirmed to Fox News that Trump will holdtele-rallies with Ciattarelli.
In what’s expected to be a low-turnout election, Trump’s backing could prove crucial for Ciattarelli, who’s making his third run for governor after narrowly losing to Murphy four years ago.
