N.J. Governor’s Race Between Incumbent Phil Murphy And Republican Jack Ciattarelli Too Close To Call

TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — Democratic incumbent Phil Murphy is trying to fight off a stiff challenge from Republican Jack Ciattarelli in the race for New Jersey governor.

As of 12:15 a.m. Wednesday, with nearly 89% of precincts reported, Ciattarelli leads 50-49, according to tabulation by The Associated Press.

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Of note, Essex and Passaic counties, which tend to be Democratic strongholds, still had thousands of votes to be counted, CBS2’s Meg Baker reported.

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No Democrat has won re-election for governor in the state since 1977. Murphy carried an 8-point lead in the polls heading into Tuesday, but Ciattarelli had been narrowing the gap and believed he had the momentum coming into Election Day. He had been telling supporters Murphy was going to be one term and done as governor, CBS2’s Jessica Layton reported.

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Ciattarelli, a former state assemblyman, was out in his hometown of Raritan early in the morning, just hours after he held a rally there Monday night, talking to voters, especially those undecided or unaffiliated with a party, and urging them to get to the polls with just a few hours left. He had been campaigning on the slogan “Let’s Fix New Jersey,” promising small business owners and homeowners better times would be ahead if he was elected.

“If you like high property taxes and New Jersey being the worst place in the country to do business, if you like waiting five hours in line at motor vehicles, to get your unemployment check or go to state government, vote for Phil Murphy. But if you want change, you do that by voting for Jack Ciattarelli,” he said.

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Baker was inside Convention Hall on the Asbury Park boardwalk, where Murphy’s slogan “Stronger Fairer Forward” was prominently displayed. However, the mood in the room, initially joyful as the Democrat jumped out to a big lead, started to change as Ciattarelli took the lead after 10 p.m.

Some of the governor’s first-term accomplishments he touted while campaigning included raising the minimum wage, enacting paid sick leave, and investing in child care to make the state a fairer place to live.

He also pushed for stricter gun laws, a focus on the environment and investment into wind energy, maternal health, and fighting for federal help with aging infrastructure like the Portal Bridge project that starts this spring to bring much needed relief to NJ TRANSIT and AMTRAK commuters.

“I’m proud of what we’re running on. I’m proud of the stuff we’ve done, like what we’ve done with this extraordinary mayor here in Newark. But again, we’re not taking one vote for granted,” Murphy said earlier in the day.

Both candidates packed their schedules with back-to-back events Tuesday, urging their supporters to go the polls. The election’s outcome hinged on turnout after only 3.2% of registered voters participated in the state’s first ever in-person early voting.

New Jersey voters said major issues this election cycle include education, the state’s budget and, of course, COVID-19. Both candidates were vaccinated, but Murphy has been extremely pro-vaccine and pro-mask in public. Ciattarelli did not require proof of vaccination or mask wearing at his campaign party in Bridgewater on Tuesday night, Layton reported.

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CBS2’s Jessica Layton and Meg Baker contributed to this report.