Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli faced off in their second and final debate on Wednesday.
Eyewitness News anchor Bill Ritter and WPVI-TV anchor Tamala Edwards moderated the debate from the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center in New Brunswick.
Check out debate blog to watch key moments.
New Jersey is one of two states, along with Virginia, electing governors this fall – contests that are being viewed as a measure of how voters feel about President Donald Trump’s second term and how Democrats are responding.
The hourlong debate gave the candidates a chance to cement their pitches to voters, who have already begun mailing in ballots ahead of the Nov. 4 election. Early in-person voting is scheduled for Oct. 25 to Nov. 2.
Much of the debate focused on local issues such as the best ways to lower costs in the notoriously expensive state. But they also disagreed on the federal government shutdown, including the Trump administration’s efforts to use it as a pretext to freeze funding for the Hudson River rail project, which would replace the more than century-old, crumbling tunnels connecting New Jersey and New York City.
The debate became increasingly pointed and personal as it went on. One of the most contentious moments came when Sherrill, a four-term congresswoman elected during Trump’s first midterm to a longtime GOP-held seat, accused Ciattarelli of profiting off the opioid crisis, leading to deaths.
“You’re trying to divert from the fact you killed tens of thousands of people by printing your misinformation, your propaganda,” she charged. The connection to opioid manufacturers surfaced during Ciattarelli’s last bid for governor four years ago. NJ.com reported that a medical publishing company Ciattarelli owned received more than $12 million in grants, mostly from pharmaceutical companies, to publish content promoting the use of opioids as a low-risk treatment for chronic pain. Ciattarelli sold the company in 2017.
Ciattarelli denied the accusation and responded by referencing the scandal surrounding Sherrill’s military records, saying, at least “I got to walk at my college graduation.”
But they agreed on one thing: Both are united in keeping in place a law that makes it illegal to pump your own gas in the Garden State.
New Jersey has gone Democratic in presidential and Senate contests for decades, but it’s alternated between Republicans and Democrats in its odd-year elections for governor. Going back to the 1980s, voters went with the nominee from the party opposite to the president’s. But term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy broke that pattern in 2021 when he won reelection narrowly over Ciattarelli, now in his third campaign for governor.
The state, however, has grown more conservative in recent years, with Trump losing last November to Democrat Kamala Harris by just 6 points – a dramatic swing from his nearly 13-point deficit in 2016.
Election Day is Tuesday, November 4, 2025.
To register in New Jersey, you must be:
A United States citizen
At least 17 years old, though you may not vote until you have reached the age of 18
A resident of the county for 30 days before the election
A person not serving a sentence of incarceration as the result of a conviction of any indictable offense under the laws of this or another state or of the United States.
The registrant must complete a Voter Registration Application and/or Party Affiliation Form. Mail or deliver the Voter Registration Application and/or Party Affiliation Form to the County Commissioner of Registration or Superintendent of Elections for your county.
Residents may also file their application to vote on the New Jersey voter portal.
You are not eligible to register to vote if:
You are serving a sentence of Incarceration due to a conviction of an indictable offense under the laws of this or another state or of the United States.
General Election Deadlines
The early voting period is October 25 – November 2, 2025.
October 28 – Deadline to apply for a mail-in ballot by mail for the General Election
October 31 – Deadline for overseas civilian and military voters to apply for an electronic ballot
November 3 – 3 PM – Deadline for in-person mail-in-ballot applications
November 4 – 6 AM – 8 PM – General Election Day
For more information about voting in New Jersey, please visit the NJ Voter Information Portal.
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Some information from the Associated Press
