Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli has gained ground and is now tied with Democratic candidate Mikie Sherrill in the New Jersey governor’s race, according to a poll released Thursday.
Ciattarelli, a former state assemblyman, and Sherrill, a congresswoman, each have support from 43 percent of Garden State voters, with 11 percent undecided, the survey by Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill found. While previous polls have found Sherrill ahead in the blue-leaning state, according to the New York Post, the outlet noted that “New Jersey public polling also has a history of underestimating Republicans in recent elections.”
The surprise finding—released days after the two candidates’ first debate and just weeks before the November 4 election—comes as Ciattarelli has launched a $1.3 million ad campaign accusing Sherrill of having “no real plans” for the state, the Post reported. The ad campaign shows Sherrill stumbling for an answer after an interviewer asked what she would do if she could only pass “one piece of legislation.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” Ciattarelli says in his ad. “You want to be governor, and you can’t answer that question?”
🚨Check out our new TV ad and see exactly who Mikie is…
Not a serious candidate, with no real plans. Even Democrats have denounced her and endorsed my candidacy.
New Jersey can’t afford more of the same. It’s time to fix the state we all love. When I’m Governor, we will put… pic.twitter.com/21MYHBLT0i— Jack Ciattarelli (@Jack4NJ) September 15, 2025
President Donald Trump in a Thursday Truth Social post highlighted the poll and praised Ciattarelli.
“Wow!!! A just out poll has Jack Ciattarelli essentially beating close to incompetent Mike Sherrill [sic] in the race for Governor of New Jersey,” Trump wrote. “Jack is tough on crime and cutting taxes, two things that people really demand today. He will be a GREAT Governor.”
Sherrill has been no stranger to controversy over the years. She has long faced scrutiny over her stock trades, banking millions of dollars since coming to Congress in 2019, the Washington Free Beacon reported in May after reviewing her financial disclosures. The congresswoman’s campaign also repeatedly inflated her naval rank in fundraising emails, the Free Beacon reported the same month.
“In the modern era, Democrats have not held on to the New Jersey governor’s office for more than two full terms in a row,” the Post noted. “If Sherrill wins, she will break that record.”
Outgoing Democratic governor Phil Murphy defeated Ciattarelli by only 3 percentage points in 2021.
