US Rep Mikie Sherrill wins New Jersey Democratic primary for governor

US Rep Mikie 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.

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 teacher's union. She will face the Republican nominee in the November general election.

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 mid-term elections.

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 mid-term election in Trump's first term, winning in a district that the GOP had controlled for years.

Her primary campaign, like those of her rivals, focused on finding ways to make the state more affordable, though she shied away during the primary campaign from offering a broad-based plan. She focused instead on more narrow steps such as lowering housing costs by boosting the number of development tax credits so more housing could be built. 

 

Sherrill overcame fellow Democratic Rep Josh Gottheimer, Mayors Ras Baraka of Newark and Steven Fulop of Jersey City, former state Senate President Steve Sweeney and New Jersey Education Association head Sean Spiller.

Part of her winning coalition included the endorsements of significant county party organisations like those in populous Essex and Middlesex, traditionally backbones of winning campaigns in the Garden State. She also sought to galvanise support among women, a key component of the party's base, winning endorsements from reproductive rights groups like EMILY's List.

A win in November would give New Jersey its second female governor after Christine Todd Whitman held the office for two terms as a Republican. The current governor, Democrat Phil Murphy, is prohibited from seeking a third consecutive term because of term limits. He didn't endorse a successor in the primary.