With the race for New Jersey governor tightening up, the candidates took advantage of an opportunity to speak directly to Black voters on Friday night.
It was a New Jersey gubernatorial forum where the two major candidates never shared the stage at the same time, but looming large in the race was President Donald Trump.
Democratic Congressmember Mikie Sherrill out the gate invoked the president’s name.
“The president and his family are reported to have made… the last time I calculated about $5 billion, I think that’s what we know about,” Sherrill said.
Former Republican State Assemblymember Jack Ciattarelli meanwhile, tried to create distance.
“I’m a proud Republican but I’m not an idealogue, I’m not a hyper partisan,” Ciattarelli said. “I’m not owned by anybody.”
The two candidates made their pitch to voters at the Metropolitan Baptist Church in Newark.
Ciattarelli has been stumping in traditionally Democratic districts, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed.
Sherrill for her part had been leaning heavily on her biography as a former naval officer and a former federal prosecutor, but with polls showing a tight race, Sherrill has been sharpening her attacks.
“His biggest funder is somebody who’s being investigated right now for driving up rental prices in this state,” Sherrill said.
She’s countered her opponent’s ads with her own.
“Politics is not a pretty business and when it’s played by indecent people it can get downright ugly,” Ciattarelli said. “So, one of the biggest mistruths of this campaign is TV commercials saying I’m going to raise your taxes by 10%. I’m not raising any taxes.”
Meanwhile, Ciattarelli didn’t utter President Trump’s name once on stage, then left the forum to jump on a tele-rally with Trump.
“Jack will do unbelievable… he will produce unbelievable results,” Trump said. “If this other one… Mikie as they call, the only thing she’s got is an unusual name but other than that she’s terrible.”
New Jersey is a blue state, but Republicans have made inroads in recent years.
So, this race will be an early verdict on the political climate before next year’s midterms.
———-
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
* More New Jersey news
* Send us a news tip
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
* Follow us on YouTube
Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
