New Jersey voters go to polls in crowded primaries for governor
New Jersey's Rep. Mikie Sherill vied Tuesday with five fellow Democrats in a competitive primary race to replace Gov. Phil Murphy while President Trump's pick dominates the Republican race to lead the Garden State.
Sherill has led most polls in the unpredictable Democratic contest against Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, Rep. Josh Gottheimer and south Jersey powerbroker Steve Sweeney.
On the GOP side, Jack Ciattarelli, who mounted a strong challenge to Murphy in 2021, is considered a strong favorite to ride Trump's endorsement to victory over Bill Spadea and three others.
The open race for the governor's mansion in Jersey, a blue-leaning state that swung sharply to the right in 2024, could offer powerful signals about the public's reaction to Trump's controversial second term in the White House and how Democrats should push back.
Murphy is barred from term limits from running again, opening the door to an unusually large field of viable candidates.
New Jersey and Virginia are the only two states with governors' races this year, putting additional national attention to the race.
The Democratic primary victor will likely head into the November general election as a strong favorite, although Trump's strong performance last year has given the jitters to some Democrats.
Turnout is expected to be somewhat anemic, meaning the most reliable voters may swing the races.
Polls say Sherill, a four-term lawmaker from Montclair, is the modest favorite on the Democratic side.
But Fulop may have an enthusiasm edge. He is associated with the ascendant anti-machine wing of the New Jersey Democratic Party, which has celebrated some big wins over the establishment in recent years like the victory of Sen. Andy Kim to replace disgraced ex-Sen. Robert Menendez.
Baraka is not widely known outside the state's largest city, but won plenty of news coverage with his involvement in a controversial protest against Trump's immigration crackdown that led to the arrest of Newark Rep. LaMonica McIver.
Gottheimer is considered a major leader of the national party's moderate wing but has run a disappointing race in his home state, while Sweeney may benefit from being the only candidate in the crowded field hailing from south of Interstate 195 that splits the state in half.
Ciattarelli and Spadea have long sparred over who is the most loyal to Trump and his MAGA movement. Ciattarelli was once a critic of Trump but has come around to support the president like most Republicans.
Both parties will look to build their general election campaigns on widespread voter frustration. For Democrats, that means focusing on the parts of Trump's aggressive second-term agenda that are unpopular. Republicans, meanwhile, are casting blame for economic hardships on Democrats who've run state government for the last eight years.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
34 minutes ago
- CBS News
About 200 Marines begin Los Angeles deployment at Westwood Federal Building
Approximately 200 Marines arrived in Los Angeles to begin an assignment to guard the Wilshire Federal Building on Friday, according to an Army general, marking a rare occasion where military forces will be deployed on U.S. soil. President Trump last \weekend federalized and deployed more than 2,000 National Guard soldiers and 700 Marines to L.A. after protests erupted in the light of immigration enforcement operations throughout the city and nearby areas. The move to send military has been described as "authoritarian" by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, while Mr. Trump said Friday morning that the "city would be burning to the ground right now" had he not activated the troops. Newsom has challenged the decision in a lawsuit. A federal judge sided with Newsom and blocked Mr. Trump from sending troops on Thursday night, but an appeals court temporarily halted the order later that evening. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit scheduled another hearing on the case for June 17. The troops are allowed to stay in L.A. at least until that date. US Marines walk on the parking lot of the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, California, on June 13, 2025. A judge has ordered Donald Trump to return control of the California National Guard to the state, saying the president's decision to deploy them to protest-hit Los Angeles over Governor Gavin Newsom's objections was "illegal." Protests against Trump's harsh immigration policies spread on June 11 across the United States despite a military-backed crackdown in Los Angeles and threats by the hard-right Republican president to use "heavy force." ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images During a news conference Friday morning, Maj. Gen. Scott M. Sherman said the Marines arrived in L.A. Thursday night. They began their assignment in Westwood around noon on Friday. Sherman added that the sole mission of the deployed Marines is to protect federal property and personnel, like the Federal Building. The Marines will be armed with weapons and wearing crowd control gear such as a riot shield, baton and gas masks. "I would like to emphasize that the soldiers will not participate in law enforcement activities," Sherman said. "Rather, they'll be focused on protecting federal law enforcement personnel." Sherman confirmed that the National Guard soldiers who have been deployed since Sunday have also not participated in law enforcement activity. No troops have been injured since arriving in L.A. "They have watched federal law enforcement arrest personnel as they were protecting," Sherman said. "They have not had to detain anyone at this point." It's not yet clear what assignments the other 500 deployed Marines will receive in L.A. Sherman said he couldn't speculate on future operations, but recent training has centered around defending federal property. "That's the mission we've really focused on them to do," he said. "They've already started with the Wilshire [Federal] Building today, and we will progress from there." As of Friday morning, there were 56,300 individuals in ICE detention centers across the country, a record for the agency, according to internal government data obtained by CBS News. On Thursday and Wednesday, ICE recorded 1,400 and 1,600 nationwide immigration arrests, respectively, the statistics indicate. ICE arrests have increased by more than 100% since President Trump's first 100 days in office, but they remain well below the 3,000 daily arrest rate demanded by the White House. contributed to this report.
CNBC
40 minutes ago
- CNBC
White House reviews SpaceX contracts as Trump-Musk feud simmers, Reuters sources say
The White House earlier this month directed the Defense Department and NASA to gather details on billions of dollars in SpaceX contracts following the public blowout between President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, four people familiar with the order told Reuters. Sparking an ongoing review, the administration ordered the agencies to scrutinize Musk's contracts to ready possible retaliation against the businessman and his companies, these people said. As Reuters reported on Thursday, Pentagon officials are simultaneously considering whether to reduce the role that SpaceX, Musk's space and satellite company, may win in an ambitious new U.S. missile defense system. Reuters couldn't determine whether the White House intends to cancel any of the approximately $22 billion in federal contracts SpaceX now has. But the review shows the administration is following through on a threat by Trump during his spat with Musk last week to possibly terminate business and subsidies for Musk ventures. "We'll take a look at everything," the president said, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on June 6. In an email to Reuters, a White House spokesperson didn't answer questions about Musk's business, saying the "Trump administration is committed to a rigorous review process for all bids and contracts." In a separate statement, a spokesperson at NASA said the agency "will continue to work with our industry partners to ensure the president's objectives in space are met." Neither SpaceX nor officials at the Defense Department responded to requests for comment. The people familiar with the order said the contract scrutiny is intended to give the administration the ability to move fast if Trump decides to act against Musk, who until recently was a senior advisor to the president and the head of the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The review is "for political ammunition," one of the people said. Whether the U.S. government could legally, or practically, cancel existing contracts is unclear. But the possibility underscores concerns among governance experts that politics and personal pique could improperly influence matters affecting government coffers, national security and the public interest. "There's an irony here that Musk's contracts could be under the same type of subjective political scrutiny that he and his DOGE team have put on thousands of other contracts," said Scott Amey, a contracting expert and general counsel at the Project on Government Oversight, a watchdog group based in Washington. "Any decision shouldn't be based on the egos of two men but on the best interests of the public and national security." Musk's SpaceX in recent years has become a crucial partner of the U.S. government in much of its aerospace and defense work – launching satellites and other space cargo and potentially managing a crucial element of the "Golden Dome" missile shield planned by Trump. Although Musk in recent days has sought to walk back some of his critiques of the president – such as calling for Trump's impeachment last week and linking him to a convicted sex offender – his outbursts nonetheless highlighted the government's reliance on SpaceX. Before reversing course, Musk threatened to decommission the company's Dragon spacecraft. The spacecraft, as part of a roughly $5 billion contract with NASA, is the only U.S. vessel currently capable of carrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station. SpaceX is also building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a classified contract with the National Reconnaissance Office, a U.S. intelligence agency. The contract was a pivotal transaction for SpaceX, deepening its ties with U.S. defense and intelligence services.
CBS News
41 minutes ago
- CBS News
Pittsburgh-area leaders react to strikes in Israel and Iran
KDKA is reaching out to local leaders to get their reaction to the strikes in Israel and Iran. Thursday, Israel launched unprecedented strikes on the Islamic country. The target: Iran's nuclear program. The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh is reacting to the move. "Shocked at the intensity of the attack but also we had intelligence leading up to this that something was going to be happening, so not completely out of the blue," said Shawn Brokos, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh's director of community security. The federation is in contact with law enforcement. On Thursday night, they sent emails to members of the community, urging them to be vigilant. "Which is not new, but to also employ best practices for security and we are also coordinating with local police as far as having some additional marked units and a police presence at a lot of our events this weekend," Brokos explained. Friday, Iran struck back, hoping to send a message of its own by launching retaliatory missiles in Tel Aviv. President Trump said on social media Friday that Iran should agree to a nuclear deal before there is nothing left. One expert said it's hard for decisions to be made once the fighting is underway. "Decision making is probably partly paralyzed. We don't know how much Iran's effective capabilities have been destroyed or hampered as a result of Israeli operations," explained Ali Vaez, the International Crisis Group's Iran Project director. KDKA-TV reached out to the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh and the Muslim Association of Greater Pittsburgh for comment, but didn't hear back.
