I know all of the votes are still being counted and the results need to be certified, but it’s looking like we’re going to be getting a new representative in NJ – 11.
I know there have been some rumors about Sheena Collum considering a run. I think that would be cool. I like her energy, I like what she would bring to Congress. Plus, I have actually met her in person, so she would be the first member of Congress I could say that about.
It’s interesting to see a lot of potential candidates that have held municipal or county positions but not the state legislature. Usually we would see candidates from state senate or assembly trying to reach the next level or mayors from large cities.
Speaking as a middle-aged white dude, I’m hoping we don’t end up with a middle-aged white dude. Or at least not a heteronormative middle-aged white dude. There’s a surfeit of MAWDs in Congress.
And yes, I believe in diversity for diversity’s sake.
I got an email from Tom Malinowski announcing his candidacy and asking for money. Yawn. Not one person really excites me in this race so far.
I deleted the email and unsubscribed from whatever political mailing list it came from. I know it’s like playing wac-a-mole and I’ll be getting others. I’m not invested enough in any candidate to donate to a primary campaign.
Once the candidate for the seat has been identified I’ll have a different attitude.
Has Tahesha Way formally announced? I read a couple of articles that say it’s expected, but not the formal announcement. I’m not sure how much clout her current position as Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State will give her.
Murphy has already endorsed Brendan Gill, as have a number of other notable Democrats.
In my humble opinion, we need more women and people of color in Congress. We’re currently at 29% women in the House which will go down now that Mike Sherrill is resigning. And around 11% black representatives.
I won’t argue that we also need qualified people in those seats. But if you look at Gill vs Way I don’t see any stark differences in their credentials.
Anyway the primary will be February 5 and the special election will be April 16. I don’t know if this one is going to be a slam dunk for the Democrat candidate. We’ll see I guess.
She hasn't formally announced but several publications have said she will run.
Yeah that’s the vibe I got.
I wonder how quickly the group will whittle down. You have Gill endorsed by Murphy who has a bunch of campaign cash ready to go. Malinowski who was in the House already. The current lieutenant governor. John Bartlett who campaigned for the seat in 2018 but lost to Sherrill in the primary.
Then a number of elected town officials like Dafis, Strickland and Grayzel. Then some people who are currently not in a political role.
It raises an interesting question about whether a more progressive candidate can win NJ-11 in both the special election as well as the 2026 midterms and beyond. I think she’d get a lot of support in Maplewood, South Orange, Glen Ridge and Montclair so driving turnout would be key in those areas.
I don’t know enough about the parts of the district that are in Morris and Passaic counties. I’m sure Mikie Sherrill had lots of support among centrist independents in those areas and maybe even some moderate Republicans who are put off by Trump and MAGA. A Bernie/AOC type candidate might scare off some of that part of the Sherrill voters.
I think if there was a moderate Republican candidate it could be a more competitive race.
Along with all the other caveats that the story and its disclaimer mention, the relatively large 5% margin of sampling error is a reason to question the poll’s credibility.
Not a lot of noise about this, which is funny considering how consequential this seat could be. I’ve gotten “send me money” texts from Malinowski and Dafis, which I promptly unsubscribed from. I would have no problem voting for either in the general election on 4/16, but I hate that political contributions now generate an endless series of text messages begging for money.
Not a lot of noise about this, which is funny considering how consequential this seat could be. I’ve gotten “send me money” texts from Malinowski and Dafis, which I promptly unsubscribed from. I would have no problem voting for either in the general election on 4/16, but I hate that political contributions now generate an endless series of text messages begging for money.
I do see that Ras Baraka endorsed Analilia Mejia.
I expect campaigning to increase significantly right after New Year's Day.
It feels like there is a lot of political fatigue right now. With 13 candidates on the Democratic side, who wants to spend the time researching all of them. Let some drop out and worry about it in January.
The bare minimum I want is a Democrat in that seat come April. I think whoever wins the special election has a high likelihood of retaining that seat until they’re ready to move on. Or get caught in a scandal.
I’d love to see us send someone like Mejia instead of another cookie-cutter white man who sticks to following the party line. I think we’re the kind of district that could support putting a more progressive rep in place to help pull the Democratic caucus incrementally to the left. I also hope we get Bernie to come campaign for her. He’s a really persuasive speaker especially in small forums, and I think he’d be able to talk to some more centrist democrats into believing in someone like her.
I expect campaigning to increase significantly right after New Year's Day.
It feels like there is a lot of political fatigue right now. With 13 candidates on the Democratic side, who wants to spend the time researching all of them. Let some drop out and worry about it in January.
I'm up for researching in January. I'm looking for the first debate. A pollster called me last month and there were too many names that I was unfamiliar with. That said, he threw in a few names that were not contenders, trick questions, among them he threw in Mamdani.
I know all of the votes are still being counted and the results need to be certified, but it’s looking like we’re going to be getting a new representative in NJ – 11.
I know there have been some rumors about Sheena Collum considering a run. I think that would be cool. I like her energy, I like what she would bring to Congress. Plus, I have actually met her in person, so she would be the first member of Congress I could say that about.