NEWARK, NJ — As Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill stood in the middle of a street in Newark's West Ward Sunday afternoon, she signaled that voters there could make the difference in this year's race for governor.
“New Jersey is a blue state. And so all we have to do is get everyone to the polls, because when we vote, we win,” the four-term congresswoman told her supporters as they prepared to knock on doors in her race against Republican Jack Ciattarelli.
Cheryl repeated: “When we vote…”
This time the crowd finished their sentence. “We are winning!”
Cheryl's message emphasizes that her path to victory in November depends on ousting core Democratic Party supporters, including in the Western District, a predominantly black community in the state's largest city.
But concerns about black voter support and participation remain among Democrats in New Jersey and nationally following President Donald Trump's 2024 victory. Trump lost the Garden State but made significant gains from his 2016 and 2020 performances. especially among voters of color in urban areas of the state.
Democrats are generally confident the state's black voters will go to the polls in large numbers in less than two weeks, in part to denounce Trump's policies. But some acknowledge there are voters who need convincing.
One of those voters is J.P. Sloan, a 38-year-old Newark resident who came to the campaign trail Sunday to hear Sherrill speak. Sloan, a self-described progressive who backed the Green Party in last year's presidential race over concerns about war between Israel and Hamas, said he is concerned about Sherrill's stance on military intervention given that Sherrill is a former Navy helicopter pilot.
He's torn between voting for Sherrill or not voting at all in the governor's race.
“I understand the urgency of the situation,” Sloan said, noting that Republican governors have supported Trump’s policies. “But ultimately I want to vote my conscience and be true to my values.”
Jackie McCoy, a retiree who lives a block from where Cheryl spoke in the Western District, initially expressed her support for Cheryl, saying she would “probably” vote for the congresswoman.
“I want to see what she has to say, other than she's a Navy veteran, a pilot and a mom of four,” said McCoy, a staunch Democrat who noted she would never support Ciattarelli.
Asked if she might end up not voting in the gubernatorial election, McCoy said she would support Cheryl.
“I would never leave that field blank,” McCoy said. “My people have fought too hard to be able to vote. We will never give up voting.”
Ongoing Concerns
Lori Williams, who leads the Essex County Democratic Committee's West Precinct canvassing effort, said that when she talks to voters in the area, “some people are excited and some people are apprehensive” about Cheryl's support.
“What happens is they say, 'I don't know her,' right? That's it, like, 'I don't know her,'” Williams said.
“So I tell them what I know about her and why they should vote for her because right now we have to continue to move New Jersey forward,” Williams said. “We can't go back.”
Williams is confident their efforts on the ground are producing results, and says voters often say, “Look, if you're at my door and I trust you, I'll go with you.”
“Black voters are coming out,” Williams said.
Rep. Herb Conaway, D-N.J., said he has heard concerns about black voter turnout, especially after Trump's speech last year. Trump lost New Jersey by 6 points but improved his 2020 lead by 10 points, the second-largest shift toward Trump in the country.
“We're coming off a 2024 election in which we saw some erosion of support for our national candidates among African Americans and Latinos, particularly men,” Conaway told NBC News after he began knocking on doors in Medford on Saturday. “And so that will certainly be a concern now. But we as a party are moving into all the areas where there is soft support.”
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who lost to Cheryl in the Democratic gubernatorial primary and endorsed her in September, said concerns about black voter turnout are “real.”
“People weren't talking to black voters, to Hispanic voters, yes, to working-class voters in general,” Baraka said after a Sunday morning roundtable with Sherrill and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. He noted that the Democratic Party recognizes this is a problem and said that in recent weeks he has seen Sherrill's campaign step up its organizing and outreach to black communities.
T. Missy Balmire, a veteran New Jersey-based Democratic strategist and senior adviser to Sherrill's campaign, said concerns about black voter turnout have subsided since the June primary as the campaign has stepped up its efforts. Balmire also attributed Trump's gains in urban areas to broader disillusionment with the political system that has prompted some voters to stay home. However, she is confident that Cheryl will receive strong support in November.
“As a community, you can be frustrated with the political system as a whole, but still understand what's at stake in New Jersey when you have a 100% MAGA Republican governor, right?” – said Balmir. “So knowing that, we pretty much see that voters are ready and willing to vote for Mikie Sherrill.”
New Jersey Democratic Party Chairman LeRoy Jones, who also attended Sunday's roundtable in Newark, acknowledged his latest comments that the Democratic Party must “do better” in its messaging to black voters.
But Jones said the party is already doing that in the New Jersey governor's race with the help of a polarizing president.
“You're always going to be concerned about turnout and how to get it. And as I said, Donald Trump has been the best unifier for our turnout patterns across the state, across all of our core counties,” Jones said.
Trump was a big factor for Erica Williams, a social worker and Maplewood resident who attended the campaign in Newark. She said she supports Cheryl “because I'm a Democrat” and supports Cheryl's policies.
“And,” Williams added, “we really need someone to stand up to Trump right now.”
Resistance to Trump is also a major issue for Sloan, an undecided voter. He is particularly concerned that Newark is on Trump's “hit list” and that Trump could send federal troops to the city.
Baraka addressed those concerns when he defended Cheryl on Sunday afternoon, telling a crowd gathered in downtown Newark: “We just don't want her to be governor. We need her to be governor.”
“We need to make sure that we have a governor who, when the president says he wants to send in the National Guard, will support us,” Baraka said. “When they say they want to cut Medicaid, you know she has our back. When they say they want to cut funding for our schools, you know she has our back.”
Working with voters
Republicans see an opportunity to capitalize on Trump's success in New Jersey. Ciattarelli, a former state legislator who lost a tight race for governor four years ago, was asked at an Elizabeth town hall last week how he could win this year. And he pointed to Trump's improving performance among black and Latino voters.
“I think a lot of minorities are starting to wake up to the fact that they're being taken for granted by the Democratic Party,” Ciattarelli said, noting that he campaigned in black and Latino areas.
Ciattarelli told reporters after the event that Trump appealed to black and Latino voters because “people want economic opportunity. They want good public schools. They want safe communities. And they've had that with the failures of the Democratic Party, especially here in New Jersey.”
Cheryl rebutted Ciattarelli's comments, telling reporters after Sunday's roundtable in Newark that she was in the area “to show how important all of our communities are, and certainly communities like our black community here in Newark, which has historically been underinvested in.”
Cheryl said she wanted to highlight the work of investing in neighborhoods and “ensuring that we don't take anyone for granted or leave anyone behind.”
Cheryl's associate, Dr. Dale Caldwell, a black pastor, added, “We've been all over the state in the black community. That was very powerful for us.”
Sherrill also pointed out that Ciattarelli recently fired a reporter who asked about the importance of black and Latino voters, saying, “Next question.” Ciattarelli defended his answer noting that his press conference was on an unrelated topic.
However, Cheryl mentioned the moment to her supporters in Newark.
“When Jack Ciattarelli was asked, do black communities have a place at the table? Do Latino communities have a place at the table? Does anyone remember what he said?” Cheryl asked, and some in the crowd shouted, “Next question!”
In addition to the weekend event in Newark with Moore, Maryland's first black governor and the third black governor elected in the nation's history, Cheryl campaigned throughout New Jersey in black communities and met with black leaders. She visited black churches, spoke at the NAACP state convention, launched a get-out-the-vote campaign and met with black small business owners in Atlantic City, among other activities.
Cheryl also recently received support from Black Men Vote PAC and nearly 150 Black faith leaders. And former President Barack Obama is set to lead a rally for Cheryl in Newark on November 1st.
Balmire, the Sherrill campaign adviser, said prominent leaders such as Obama and Moore could help draw attention to the race.
“The emergence of these surrogates is a reminder that everyone understands what is at stake and how important it is for us to ensure that we do not have a 100% MAGA governor in New Jersey,” Balmire said.
