Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ) is one of the more respected election forecasters, and as such, a flurry of outlets followed its call and crowned Malinowski, a former US House representative, the winner of the Democratic primary election. The North Jersey congressional seat is solidly Democratic-its previous representative, Mikie Sherrill, is now the governor of New Jersey-meaning that whoever emerged out of this primary would likely win the special election in two months' time. For a moment, it appeared as though that would be Malinowski.
When the US supreme court overturned Roe v Wade more than three years ago, unleashing a wave of state-level abortion bans, the justices catapulted abortion rights to the top of US voters' minds. The issue has dominated every election cycle since and 2025 is no different. The gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia could have sweeping consequences for abortion access in two states that have become havens for women fleeing abortion bans. In Pennsylvania, what should have been a relatively sleepy judicial-retention election has evolved into the most expensive race of its kind in nearly 50 years, largely due to heated fighting over abortion.
The election playing out on both sides of the Hudson River is something of an experiment about the Democratic Party during the second Trump era. Is the future Mamdani, a movement politician fluent in social media who commands the attention of both his faithful and his detractors? Or is it Sherrill, who has the sort of résumé and mainstream credentials that Establishment Democrats have long thought is the key to winning over voters skeptical of their party?
After last year's election, when Republicans made significant inroads in the state, New Jersey voters will cast ballots in an off-year, unpredictable gubernatorial race that voters and experts say feels different from any in recent memory. Democrat Mikie Sherrill, a former navy pilot and federal prosecutor who represents New Jersey's 11th congressional District, is facing Republican Jack Ciattarelli, a businessman and former state lawmaker, who is making his third bid for governor, this time with Donald Trump's endorsement.
Ciattarelli's platform includes a plan to cap property taxes, cut state spending by 30%, and repeal the state's sanctuary policy, aiming to invigorate the New Jersey GOP.
This has nothing to do with congressional oversight, and it has nothing to do with politics. It's about respecting those who risk their lives to keep us safe.
