The crowded Democratic primary in the race to succeed Gov. Mikie Sherrill in the House was a nail-biter on Thursday night, with progressive activist Analilia Mejia and former Rep. Tom Malinowski locked in a close race.
The narrow results and Mejia’s strength surprised many political observers who believed Malinowski had the edge in the 11-person race for the Democratic nomination to succeed Sherrill. Malinowski served for two terms representing the 7th District in Congress until voters ousted him in 2022.
As of 11 p.m., the Associated Press reported Mejia was leading Malinowski by about 500 votes out of more than 61,000 votes cast. The winner of the race may not be known for days as provisional and mail-in ballots are counted.
Malinowski sought reelection to the House by arguing he was best suited among the 11 Democrats running to fight President Donald Trump as the party eyes taking back control of Congress. He was the target of millions of attack ads courtesy of a group affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which opposed Malinowski because he said he supports conditions on aide to Israel.
Mejia campaigned as the progressive candidate in the race, and she had the support of Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, among other high-profile Democrats. The mood was boisterous at her election night party at Porta Montclair, where she took aim at “oligarchs.”
“We have to rebuild our party, we have to rebuild what is happening in our nation, we have to reclaim our democracy. We know our economy is rigged to suit the billionaires. We will fight that,” Mejia told the crowd of her supporters.
Whoever wins the Democratic primary will face Randolph Township Mayor Joe Hathaway, the only Republican in Thursday’s GOP primary, in the April 16 special election that was called after Sherrill resigned from the House to become governor.
The winner of April’s special election will serve out the remainder of Sherrill’s unexpired congressional term, which ends on Jan. 3, 2027.
Republicans held the 11th District for more than 30 years before Sherrill flipped it in the same Democratic wave that elected Malinowski. Its boundaries were redrawn in 2021 to make it a safer district for Democrats.
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