NJ-11 voter turnout at 8%

Voter turnout for Thursday’s special election for Congress in New Jersey’s 11th is over 8%, with 50,605 votes already cast in the race for Mikie Sherrill’s old congressional seat between Democrat Analilia Mejia and Republican Joe Hathaway.

During the first seven days of the nine-day in-person early voting period, 16,126 votes were cast, according to an analysis by VoteHub.  There have been 34,479 vote-by-mail ballots already returned.

So far, Democrats have a significant edge: 62.1% of all advance votes have been cast by registered Democrats, with 24.3% from Republicans and 13.6% from unaffiliated voters.

Only Boonton Township, Fairfield, Hanover Township, and Totowa have more Republican ballots than Democrats.

Mejia, a former labor leader and Biden administration official, served as national political director for Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign.  She defeated former Rep. Tom Malinowski by 1,186 votes, 29.3% to 27.6%, in an 11-candidate field.

Hathaway, who ran unopposed in the GOP primary, is a Randolph councilman and former mayor.  He spent nearly eight years as a staffer in the governor’s office.

Democrats have a significant voter registration edge in the 11th district: 62,900 more Democrats than Republicans, 37.6% to 27.3%, with 34.3% of voters unaffiliated with any political party.

Watch the New Jersey Globe 11th District Debate between Mejia and Hathaway: Click HERE.