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The gubernatorial race in New Jersey started out as a slam-dunk for Democrat U.S. Representative Mikie Sherrill against GOP businessman Jack Ciattarelli, who almost scored a win in the Garden State four years ago. But Ciattarelli has watched Sherill stumble her way through the summer and early fall, as poll after poll saw her once-comfortable lead evaporate gradually. Is the third time on the road to Trenton finally the charm for him? Matt Rooney is a conservative activist and founder of the website SaveNewJersey.com; he appeared on 710 WOR’s Mendte in the Morning program to assess Ciattarelli’s chances of finally catching the brass ring.
Rooney told host Larry Mendte that bringing in Brack Obama to campaign is a sure sign that Sherrill looked at her numbers and is feeling the pressure: “You don’t bring Barack Obama into Newark, despite the former President’s spotty record at being a cheerleader, unless you’re panicking… She’s in trouble; she knows it. We’re clear-eyed about the fact there are still 850,000 more registered Democrats in New Jersey than Republicans. If it was close to even, I think we’re talking about a Jack Ciattarelli landslide. But this thing is infinitely winnable for the Republican candidate, if the GOP has a big election day; that’s always the ‘if’.”
Rooney also thinks voters will see Sherrill as a third term for the unpopular Phil Murphy, and they would rather try things under the guy who almost beat Murphy in 2021: “Why would we want a repeat of the past eight years? They have not gone well. The only thing we’ve succeeded in doing in Trenton over the past eight years under Phil Murphy is boosting the Florida economy by sending all of our retirees and everyone that can afford to relocate down to the Sunshine State.”
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