Republican Jack Ciattarelli released a television ad Monday accusing his Democratic rival, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, of having “no real plans” to address New Jersey’s problems after a clip from a May interview in which Sherrill paused while asked to name a single bill she would prioritize.
The ad is part of a $1.3 million buy ahead of the Nov. 4 gubernatorial election and highlights news headlines about the state’s high property taxes and lagging student math performance. In the May 4 sitdown with CBS New York’s Marcia Kramer, Sherrill hesitated for about 18 seconds when asked to identify one law she would try to enact as governor, later mentioning a federal block grant program to support state programs, including health care initiatives.
In the ad, Ciattarelli says, “You’re kidding me, right? You want to be governor, and you can’t answer that question,” and accuses Sherrill of being “not a serious candidate.” He reiterated the message in a post on X, saying, “Even Democrats have denounced her and endorsed my candidacy. New Jersey can’t afford more of the same. It’s time to fix the state we all love. When I’m Governor, we will put families first and get NJ back on track!”
The spot cites state metrics that Ciattarelli’s campaign says underscore the need for new leadership, including New Jersey’s ranking for property taxes and student math-score progress between 2019 and 2024. The ad comes with fewer than two months to go before the general election and targets Sherrill on both policy clarity and her record on financial disclosures.
Sherrill, a U.S. representative from New Jersey, is widely viewed as the frontrunner in the race. The RealClearPolitics polling average gives her about an 8.8-percentage-point lead over Ciattarelli. The Sherrill campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ad.
The kubos in the campaign flurry reference a separate controversy involving Sherrill’s finances. A Washington Free Beacon report earlier this year said Sherrill’s husband, Jason Hedberg, realized roughly $7 million from stock trading; Sherrill also paid a $400 late fee in 2021 for failing to timely disclose certain stock trades as required by federal law. In another interview in May, radio host Charlamagne tha God questioned Sherrill about changes in the couple’s net worth; she stated at the time that she and her husband “don’t trade individual stocks” and said, “I don’t think anyone in Congress should, quite frankly.”
Sherrill’s answering of the policy question in the Kramer interview focused on a desire for federal support by way of block grants to help New Jersey fund key programs, including in health care, an approach that would depend on federal action rather than governance from the statehouse. Ciattarelli’s campaign seized on the pause and the shift to federal solutions to argue she lacked a clear, state-level agenda.
Ciattarelli, who was the Republican nominee for governor in 2021 and has run statewide before, has made energy costs, taxes and education focal points of his current campaign. The Ciattarelli ad reiterates those themes and frames the May interview moment as evidence of insufficient preparedness for the governor’s role.
The television ad represents a notable escalation as both campaigns prepare for the final stretch of the race. With polls showing Sherrill ahead, Republicans have increased pressure by targeting perceived vulnerabilities in her messaging and by highlighting questions about her financial disclosures and the degree to which she would rely on federal remedies for state issues.
As the campaign season moves forward, voters will have the opportunity to weigh those arguments and the candidates’ proposals on a range of issues including taxes, energy costs, education outcomes and ethics disclosures ahead of the Nov. 4 election.