WASHINGTON — Democrats in New Jersey’s 11th District are voting Thursday — yes, Thursday — to pick their nominee and likely successor to Gov. Mikie Sherrill, who was sworn into her new office last month.

Thirteen Democrats are on the ballot for the special election for the blue-leaning North Jersey seat, though two have since ended their campaigns. But with candidates having mere weeks to make their pitches to voters, the race is fairly open and could test the mood of Democratic voters a month before the regular primary season kicks off.

The winner of the Democratic primary will advance to an April 16 general election against Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway, who is unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Who’s on the ballot?

The candidates who have garnered the most attention in the race are former Rep. Tom Malinowski, Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill, former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way and progressive organizer Analilia Mejia.

Malinowski, ​​who worked in the Clinton and Obama administrations, is seeking a comeback to the House some three years after losing reelection in the neighboring 7th District in 2022. Having previously run in three competitive House races in the area, Malinowski entered the special election with the highest name ID and led the field in fundraising as of Jan. 16. His filings show he raised $1.2 million since entering the race and had $404,000 available for the campaign’s final weeks.

He has the backing of Sen. Andy Kim, a former House colleague, and campaigned with him and Colorado Rep. Jason Crow recently.

Still, some of Malinowski’s vulnerabilities from his most recent race have persisted, as he’s faced criticism over stock trades he made while in Congress that became the subject of a House Ethics investigation.

Gill, a longtime campaign operative who has served on the Essex County Board of Commissioners since 2011, has the support of much of the county’s Democratic establishment. He’s also been endorsed by former Gov. Phil Murphy, whose breakthrough 2017 campaign he managed. Gill, who loaned his campaign $150,000, had raised the second most in the field, bringing in $808,000 as of Jan. 16 with $348,000 banked.

Way, who recently concluded her time as the state’s second-in-command and secretary of state, has a base in Passaic County, where she was a county commissioner. She’s earned support from the Congressional Black Caucus PAC and raised $405,000 through Jan. 16, with $85,000 on hand.

Mejia worked for several unions before she became the executive director of New Jersey’s Working Families Party. She later joined Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign. She raised $420,000 and had $358,000 available as of Jan. 16. She touts endorsements from several notable progressives, including Sanders and Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Greg Casar.

Several other candidates have posted decent fundraising figures and earned support for their bids. Army veteran Zach Beecher has the backing of several local officials and veterans groups and reported the third-highest fundraising haul through Jan. 16 at $505,000. Passaic County Commissioner John Bartlett and Morris Township Deputy Mayor Jeff Grayzel followed, with both outraising Mejia and Way.

Other active candidates on the ballot include Chatham Borough Council Member Justin Strickland; former Obama administration official Cammie Croft; attorney and Trump impersonator J-L Cauvin; and Anna Lee Williams, a political newcomer who works for a digital music company.

The Democratic nominee will be favored in the April general election in a district that Kamala Harris carried by 8 points in 2024, according to calculations by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales.

What are their pitches?

Many of the candidates have each pitched themselves as the best person to take on President Donald Trump and highlighted ways they have fought back against Republicans.

“When there’s chaos all around us, you need someone who is seasoned and ready to lead on day one,” Way said in an emailed statement, citing her statewide executive experience.

Immigration enforcement has also emerged as a major through line in the race amid the violent unrest in Minnesota over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown there. That has resonated in New Jersey’s 11th District, which is near Delaney Hall, an immigration detention center in Newark where protests last year led to assault changes against Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver.

Malinowski, who emigrated from communist Poland as a child, has faced attack ads from an outside group targeting him for a 2019 vote that included funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Malinowski said he joined other New Jersey Democrats like Kim and Sherrill in backing the bill because of its humanitarian aid and border security provisions.

Gill’s campaign ran an ad featuring his wife, a Colombian immigrant, saying their daughter was afraid of ICE deportations.

“I won’t stand for it. Not for my kids, not for anyone,” Gill says in the ad.

Mejia touts that she was the first candidate in the field to call for abolishing ICE and that she’s held town halls that double as trainings to teach constituents how to respond if federal immigration agents come into their communities.

Who are the big spenders?

Malinowksi has faced significant opposition on the airwaves. United Democracy Project, a political arm of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, has spent $2.3 million opposing his campaign, filings with the Federal Election Commission show. He’s gotten some outside support from The 218 Project, which has spent $734,000 supporting his comeback bid.

The Democratic Lieutenant Governor Association’s PAC has spent $1.7 million to support Way. DMFI PAC, the political arm of the Democratic Majority for Israel, spent $24,000 on her behalf.

Meanwhile, a handful of progressive outside groups have rallied behind Mejia. Jayapal’s leadership PAC has spent $50,000 on digital advertising, while the Working Families Party PAC has spent $195,000. The Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC spent $50,000 on a digital ad to boost her campaign.

VoteVets Action Fund has spent $306,000 on TV ads to boost Beecher’s campaign, while the union-backed Affordability and Progress PAC spent $32,000 on mailers to support Gill.

--------

©2026 CQ-Roll Call, Inc. Visit at rollcall.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.