Associated Builders and Contractors backs Ciattarelli for governor

Republican gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli got the endorsement today of the New Jersey chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), a national association representing construction firms.

“ABC-NJ supports free enterprise, believes in fiscal responsibility, and the need for workforce development and other reforms,” ABC-NJ President Samantha DeAlmeida said in a statement. “We believe Jack Ciattarelli is the candidate best equipped to support New Jersey’s construction industry and its thousands of employees and suppliers.”

ABC-NJ typically backs Republicans for office, and endorsed Ciattarelli’s predecessor as Republican gubernatorial nominee, former Lieutenant Gov. Kim Guadagno, nearly four years ago to the day.

Gov. Phil Murphy, meanwhile, has gotten the bulk of construction union support in the race, including that of the Laborers’ International Union of North America and the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters.