Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli to face off in race for New Jersey Governor

Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli, with Trump's endorsement, won New Jersey's primary, setting up a November election.

Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli, who had U.S. President Donald Trump's endorsement, won their primary elections in New Jersey's race for Governor, setting the stage for a November election, poised to be fought in part over affordability and the President's policies.

Ms. Sherrill won the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s race for governor, emerging from a crowded field of experienced rivals on the strength of her biography as a Navy pilot and former prosecutor who has been a vocal critic of President Donald Trump.

Ms. Sherrill defeated five rivals, including a fellow House member, the mayors of the state’s two biggest cities, a former top state legislator and the head of the influential teachers’ union. She will face the Republican nominee, Ciattarelli, in the November general election.

The general election will undoubtedly cover New Jersey issues, like the high cost of living and sky high property taxes. But it also sets up a clear test for the president, a part-time resident with a long history in New Jersey, who waded into the contest on Ciattarelli’s side and was assailed by Sherrill throughout the primary campaign.

She becomes the Democrats’ standard-bearer at a time when the state party is looking to win the governorship for a third straight term and the national party is looking for leadership and a message that resonates with voters.

New Jersey is one of two states with a Governor’s race this year — the other is Virginia — and could give both parties the chance to test strategies ahead of next year’s high-stakes midterm elections.

Ms. Sherrill built her campaign around her personal story — a Naval Academy graduate who flew choppers for the Navy, Sherrill went on to work as a federal prosecutor in New Jersey. She first ran for office in 2018, during the midterm election in Trump’s first term, winning in a district that the GOP had controlled for years.