Progressive activist Analilia Mejia and Republican Joe Hathaway are facing off Thursday in the special election to succeed New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill in Congress.
Mejia advanced from a crowded primary in February in New Jersey’s 11th District that featured veteran Democrats, including former Rep. Tom Malinowski, former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way and Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill. Hathaway, a Randolph Township councilman, was unopposed for the Republican nomination.
Mejia enters the contest in the Democratic-leaning district as the favorite. Former Vice President Kamala Harris carried the 11th District by 9 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election, while Sherrill defeated her Republican congressional opponent by 15 points that year. Sherrill also carried the district by the same margin in her gubernatorial victory last November.
Democrats are hoping to continue their string of gains in recent special House elections since President Donald Trump took office. In six that have taken place since the beginning of 2025, Democrats have posted net improvements of between 13 and 25 points compared with the 2024 presidential election results.
The party’s biggest swing came last week in Georgia’s 14th District, formerly represented by Marjorie Taylor Greene. Democrats fell 12 points short there after Trump carried the district by 37 points in 2024.
Mejia, 48, has run on a platform of holding Trump accountable, taxing billionaires and big corporations, and guaranteeing universal health care and child care. Her campaign received a boost in the primary from national progressive figures, with Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez all endorsing her.
But she didn’t earn many local endorsements in the primary, historically an indicator of success in New Jersey. The state no longer uses a ballot system that placed candidates endorsed by county parties in more favorable spots on the ballot.
On the airwaves, the primary was defined in part by millions of dollars of attack ads Malinowski faced from United Democracy Project, the super PAC aligned with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the pro-Israel advocacy group.
The super PAC’s ads implied that Malinowski supported current federal immigration enforcement operations that he has publicly denounced. But the group told The New York Times it was opposing Malinowski because he had spoken in support of putting conditions on U.S. aid to Israel.
Yet, in cutting down Malinowski, the group’s ads helped give an opening to Mejia, who has been fiercely critical of Israel.
Mejia raised just over $1 million by the end of March, according to the Federal Election Commission. More than half of her fundraising came from contributions under $200, and she received several thousand-dollar injections from unions and progressive groups.
For his part, Hathaway, 38, has largely avoided talking about Trump, who has not made an endorsement in the election. In an April 1 debate, Hathaway said he would not be a “rubber stamp” for Trump, the New Jersey Globe reported. Hathaway has also argued on the campaign trail that he believes reducing the size of the federal government will help address affordability.
Hathaway raised $500,000 by the end of March, about 70% of which was from donations of $1,000 or more.
In the race’s final days, a secretive super PAC called American Centerpoint launched $183,000 worth of digital ads and direct mailers opposing Mejia and supporting Hathaway. One ad sought to tie Mejia to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who was elected last fall.
“New York City tried socialism. Here’s what they got: bombs outside the mayor’s house, cops pelted with ice, 17 people dead from the cold, $23 billion in new taxes. Now socialism is coming for New Jersey. Analilia Mejia, same movement, same backers,” the ad said.
Due to campaign finance laws, it wasn’t required to disclose its revenue sources before Election Day. American Centerpoint’s website says the group supports “candidates who reject extremism in all its forms, prioritize economic growth and affordability, and stand firmly and without apology against antisemitism and hate.”
The winner of Thursday’s election will serve the rest of Sherrill’s term this year. There will be a regularly scheduled primary in June for the full term.
Polls close Thursday at 8 p.m. ET.
