Top gun control organization endorses Sherrill for governor

Brady PAC, one of the country’s foremost pro-gun control groups, is weighing in on the New Jersey gubernatorial election in favor of Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair).

“While in Congress, Mikie has consistently championed gun violence prevention policies advocated by Brady, acting with the urgency this issue demands,” Brady New Jersey president Carole Stiller said in a statement. “We trust Mikie Sherrill to continue New Jersey’s strong record of standing firm against the gun lobby, prioritizing the safety of our children, and continuing to guide New Jersey towards a future where all communities and families can live free from the threat of gun violence.”

Under current Gov. Phil Murphy, New Jersey has enacted some of the nation’s strictest gun control laws; Brady PAC warned that the race’s Republican nominee, former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli (R-Somerville), would send the state backwards.

“[Sherrill’s] opponent, a Trump loyalist and gun extremist, poses a direct threat to undo decades of vital progress in the state’s gun safety laws,” Brady PAC Executive Director Ashley Lantz said. “This election is far more than just about who holds power in Trenton, it’s about protecting lives.”

Brady PAC, the political arm of a 51-year-old gun control organization of the same name, typically endorses Democrats in most races, especially as the parties have become more ideologically sorted on the issue of guns. (There are exceptions, though; Republican New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith, for example, has earned the group’s endorsement in the past.) 

The PAC also knows Sherrill well: it endorsed her during all four of her elections to Congress, including in 2018, when she was a first-time political candidate running to flip a Republican-held seat in the North Jersey suburbs.