Central Jersey Could Decide New Jersey’s Next Governor
Both campaigns blitz the region as the race for governor narrows.
November 2, 2025
Election Day is on Tuesday, November 4th. Use The Central Jerseyan voter guide to find out where to cast your ballot.
In the closing days of New Jersey’s race for governor, Central Jersey has become the political battleground. The Edison Diner, the home of Rahway’s mayor, and downtown Woodbridge received visits this week from either Mikie Sherrill or Jack Ciattarelli as the campaigns make their closing arguments in the region that could decide who leads the state next.
Three major polls released in the past week show the race too close to call. Emerson College found Sherrill leading Ciattarelli 50% to 48%.
“Heading into Election Day, the gender divide in the gubernatorial election has solidified: men break for Ciattarelli by 16 points, while women break for Sherrill by 18 points,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling. “Since last month, Ciattarelli’s lead among men increased by four points, and Sherrill’s lead among women grew by eight points.”
A poll by Atlas Intel shows Sherrill, a Democratic congresswoman from Montclair, leading 49% to 48% over Jack Ciattarelli, a Republican businessman and former assemblyman from Somerset County. A2 Insights measured Sherrill ahead 51.4% to 46.5%.
Those numbers reflect a race being watched nationally, and one shaped by two unpopular figures hovering in the background: President Donald Trump and Gov. Phil Murphy. Both candidates are navigating a political climate where Trump and Murphy each register disapproval above 50 percent statewide.
Sherrill has tried to tie Ciattarelli to Trump across the Democratic-heavy state.
“On every single occasion, Jack has decided, ‘I’m gonna defend Trump.’ He even gives Trump an A,” Sherrill said at her get out the vote rally this weekend with former President Barack Obama in Newark. “Guess what, guys? I give Trump an F.”
Mikie Sherrill appeared with former President Barack Obama in Newark during the final weekend of the campaign.
Ciattarelli has used the same tactic against Sherrill, attempting to link her to Murphy.
“On day one, by executive order, we’re coming out of Phil Murphy’s carbon tax, cap and trade program that increases your bill,” Ciattarelli said at a rally in Middletown featuring New York Congressman Mike Lawler.
Jack Ciattarelli campaigned with U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler in Middletown during his “Road to Change” bus tour through Monmouth and Ocean counties.
Ciattarelli began his final push with a stop at the Edison Diner on Route 1, part if his statewide diner tour, greeting patrons and emphasizing his main campaign message about affordability and middle-class costs.
Days later, he headlined a rally in downtown Woodbridge, calling on voters to “look around your neighborhoods” and decide whether New Jersey remains affordable for working families.
During the same stretch, Sherrill met with supporters in Rahway, joining Mayor Raymond Giacobbe for a front-porch gathering that underscored her campaign’s focus on lower Union County, a region that’s grown in population and political clout.
From there, the campaigns branched out. Sherrill hit Elizabeth, Kenilworth, and Somerset County. She also appeared in Trenton, Piscataway, and Ocean County. In Westfield, in Union County, Sherrill appeared alongside former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to highlight the Trump administration’s funding freeze for the Gateway Tunnel between New Jersey and Manhattan.
Jack Ciattarelli greets voters at the Edison Diner along Route 1 in Middlesex County, emphasizing his “Main Street Jersey” campaign message.
Mikie Sherrill met with supporters at the Rahway home of Mayor Raymond Giacobbe, highlighting her campaign’s focus on community and civic engagement.
Ciattarelli capped his week with three stops on his “Road to Change Bus Tour,” holding early-voting rallies in Hazlet, Middletown, and Toms River. Those stops bookended a week that also included early voting in Bridgewater, an announced Election Night party there, and a planned closing rally in his hometown of Raritan.
This off-year election is being closely watched by both parties as a bellwether heading into next year’s congressional midterms. Strategists on both sides view Central Jersey as a proving ground for messaging on affordability, reproductive rights, and education.
Edison, Rahway, and Woodbridge are at the center of it all. Dense, diverse, and politically independent, these towns mirror the state’s electorate more closely than any other region. Winning here is often a precursor to winning statewide.
As voters head into Election Day, Central Jersey is no longer a political afterthought wedged between North and South. It’s the place where the state’s next governor, and possibly the direction of national politics in 2026, will be decided.
Election Day is on Tuesday, November 4th. Use The Central Jerseyan voter guide to find out where to cast your ballot.