Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill’s win in New Jersey’s gubernatorial race has triggered a crowded special election to fill her U.S. House seat, with 13 Democrats contending for the nomination to face the lone Republican candidate in the race.
The staggering 13-candidate Democratic field in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District could set the tone for Democrats’ messaging priorities as the country heads into a midterm election year that could determine if Republicans maintain control of the House and Senate in 2026 amid President Donald Trump’s second-term.
Monday marked the filing deadline for candidates vying to replace Sherrill, where candidates were required to secure at least 500 signatures to make the special election ballot.
Outgoing Gov. Phil Murphy, D-N.J., issued the writ of election on Friday, Nov. 21, after Sherrill formally resigned from office on Thursday, Nov. 20. The special primary election is set for Feb. 5, 2026, and the special general election will be held on April 16, 2026.
The election comes as Democrats secured gubernatorial victories in New Jersey and Virginia and passed Proposition 50 in California this year, allowing the state to move forward with a new congressional map that is expected to add up to five Democratic-leaning districts.
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Murphy has already endorsed Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill, touting his commitment to affordability and protecting “freedoms” in the fight against Trump. As the Essex County commissioner-at-large, Gill represents 22 towns in Essex County, and according to his campaign website, is committed to “taking on tough fights and delivering results that make our communities stronger, safer, and fairer.”
While Gill has secured a coveted endorsement from the outgoing governor, Democratic voters in New Jersey’s 11th will have 12 more candidates to choose from in February.
Progressive star Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., has also thrown his hat in the ring to endorse the national political director of his 2020 presidential campaign, Analilia Mejia.
“As oligarchs and corporate interests continue to capture our government, we need true progressives to take our country back for working people. Analilia’s experience and deep dedication to working families make her the best choice for this seat. I’m proud to endorse her,” Sanders said last month.
Mejia served in the Department of Labor under President Joe Biden and is currently the co-executive director of Popular Democracy, a progressive grassroots advocacy group demanding “transformational change for Black, brown, and low-income communities.”
Another high-profile candidate with his own high-profile endorsement, former Rep. Tom Malinowski is running to return to Congress after losing his re-election for New Jersey’s 7th District in 2022.
Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., has endorsed Malinowski, touting his experience fighting the Trump administration. Malinowski served as President Barack Obama’s assistant secretary of state for democracy and human rights and was a senior director on President Bill Clinton’s National Security Council.
Outgoing Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way is also in the running for New Jersey’s 11th. The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association has endorsed Way, spotlighting her commitment to “expanding opportunity and delivering results.”
Way has also served as New Jersey’s secretary of state and was the first Black person and first secretary of New Jersey to lead the National Association of Secretaries of State as president.
Meanwhile, Chatham Councilman Justin Strickland, a U.S. Army veteran, Bronze Star recipient and former Pentagon official, is also competing for the Democratic nomination.
Strickland has centered his campaign on affordability — the winning issue in the past two election cycles.
“Our campaign revolves around one simple principle: ensuring everybody has the economic liberty to fulfill the American Dream,” Strickland said on his campaign website.
Another Democratic candidate, Anna Lee Williams, is an activist who, according to her campaign website, has spent the past decade in the “nonprofit and private sectors bringing people together around causes that matter to them.”
Democratic candidate Jeff Grayzel is a local leader who currently serves as a committeeman for Morris Township, as chairman of the police commission and on the Board of Health.
He is the former mayor of Morris Township who is “committed to solving everyday problems facing residents, such as keeping taxes stable, controlling over-development, improving our infrastructure, and addressing our deteriorating environment,” according to his campaign website.
U.S. veteran and former Army paratrooper Zach Beecher said he is “running for Congress because Donald Trump and a failed Congress are putting our people and our country at risk,” citing rising costs, healthcare and leadership on the world stage.
Per his campaign website, Beecher is currently a major in the U.S. Army Reserves, and his congressional run marks his political debut.
Passaic County Commissioner John Bartlett, who is also competing for the Democratic nomination, said he is running because New Jersey deserves “another fighter who’s ready on day one, with a record of results and a focus on what really matters to us here” and “because it’s clear that Washington needs leaders who believe in the idea of public service and are willing to put country over party.”
Another Democratic candidate, Cammie Croft, helped the Obama administration pass the Affordable Care Act, touting her commitment to “advancing humane, bipartisan immigration reforms, to building a clean energy nonprofit that helps families lower their energy bills.”
Her priorities in Congress are “lowering costs for families, ending corruption, and building a stronger, fairer economy that works for everyone,” according to Croft’s campaign website.
Marc Chaaban, a former congressional staffer for Sherrill, is seeking to replace his former boss in the office he once served.
Reflecting the sentiment of his fellow Gen Z activists and politicos, the 25-year-old said “too many Democrats in Washington are asleep at the wheel” and the moment “demands a different kind of politics.”
His commitments include rejecting Trump’s agenda, banning members of Congress from stock trading, prohibiting corporate PAC money in elections and investigating the “Trump-Epstein cover-up.”
Dean Dafis, a Maplewood township committeeman and the former mayor of Maplewood, said he is committed to making New Jersey’s 11th a more affordable place to live for working-class families. Per his campaign website, he is a civil rights advocate and the first openly LGBTQ representative on the Maplewood Township Committee.
Finally, J.L. Cauvin is a community advocate, lawyer and comedian competing for the Democratic nomination. He is running on protecting seniors, making housing more affordable, leading on artificial intelligence, protecting democracy, banning stock trading and applying term limits in Congress.
The lone Republican candidate is Joe Hathaway, who is currently the mayor of Randolph Township and began his political career as an aide to Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J.
