Trump looms over New Jersey's race for governor as candidates clash in their first debate

Voters in New Jersey may not be see the president on the ballot when they select their next governor in November, but Donald Trump still looms over the race, with the candidates clashing over his administration’s policies in their first debate.

Voters in New Jersey may not be see the president on the ballot when they select their next governor in November, but Donald Trump still looms over the race, with the candidates clashing over his administration’s policies in their first debate.

Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill worked to tie Republican Jack Ciattarelli to Trump, while Ciattarelli stressed his independence from the White House while defending some of Trump’s signature moves Sunday night. The New Jersey Globe, Rider University and On New Jersey hosted the debate, which comes as the fall campaign heats up in New Jersey and a handful of other places with 2025 elections on tap.

The New Jersey race, along with the governor’s race in Virginia, are the only two gubernatorial contests in the nation this year, and they could provide early clues for how voters are responding to the Trump administration. Trump, who has endorsed Ciattarelli, lost both states by 6 percentage points last year, though that was a significant improvement on his 2020 margin in New Jersey.

Kornacki: 2025 election results could serve as a ‘referendum’ on Trump05:44Sherrill, who said in her opening statement that she is “laser-focused on driving down costs for families like yours,” said of Ciattarelli, “He’ll do whatever Trump tells him to do, and I will fight anybody to work for you.”

Ciattarelli in turn laid out four crises facing the state: affordability, public education, public safety and overdevelopment.