New Jersey Democrat Flips To GOP, Credits Trump
The mayor of Bergen County’s fifth-largest city has left the Democratic Party, delivering a major boost to Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli in New Jersey’s hotly contested 2025 governor’s race.
Garfield Mayor Everett E. Garnto Jr. announced his party switch Thursday night before a packed rally in Garfield, declaring that “the state is broken” under Gov. Phil Murphy’s failed leadership.
“For the last seven and a half years, [Gov.] Phil Murphy’s policies have left us with sky-high taxes, soaring electric bills, and less safe communities,” Garnto said. “New Jerseyans deserve better. Jack Ciattarelli is ready to turn this state around.”
Garnto, a lifelong public servant who spent 12 years as president of the Garfield Police Benevolent Association Local 46 and previously served on the local school board, also confirmed that he backed President Donald J. Trump in the 2024 election.
Democrats Defecting to Ciattarelli
Garnto is not the only Democrat breaking ranks. Dover Mayor James P. Dodd and former Democratic Assemblyman Jamel Holley have already endorsed Ciattarelli, citing frustration with the Murphy-Sherrill wing of the party.
Labor is also shifting. The powerful International Union of Operating Engineers Local 825, representing over 7,000 members, endorsed Ciattarelli in June, praising his support for affordable energy projects like natural gas while blasting Sherrill’s fixation on costly solar schemes.
Union leader Greg Lalevee said Ciattarelli “understands New Jersey” and the crushing cost of living facing working families.
Polls Show Dead Heat
A new Emerson College survey of 935 likely voters shows the race deadlocked, with Ciattarelli and Democrat Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) tied at 43% each. Eleven percent remain undecided, leaving the contest wide open.
President Trump immediately amplified the results on Truth Social, praising Ciattarelli as “tough on crime and cutting taxes” and blasting Sherrill as a radical who backs “Open Borders (again!), men playing in Women’s Sports, Transgender for everyone, and all of the things that almost DESTROYED America.”
Trump declared that Ciattarelli “will be a GREAT Governor.”
Tax Battles and Scandals
The candidates have sparred over New Jersey’s economic future. Ciattarelli has pledged to cut property and income taxes and vowed never to raise the sales tax, accusing Sherrill of hiding questionable stock trades involving defense and technology companies.
Sherrill, who has faced criticism from both The New York Times and Business Insider over disclosure issues, brushed aside the allegations, claiming she would “drive down your cost at every level.”
Still, dissatisfaction with Democratic leadership runs deep. A National Research Inc. poll earlier this year showed 54% of New Jersey voters believe the state is on the wrong track, with that bloc breaking heavily toward Ciattarelli.
The Stakes in 2025
Ciattarelli, a former state assemblyman who narrowly lost to Murphy in 2021, has been building a broad coalition of Republicans, independents, and disillusioned Democrats. With Trump’s endorsement and a wave of defections from local Democratic leaders, momentum is shifting in his favor.
With Election Day only weeks away, the fight for New Jersey may come down to whether voters believe Sherrill will continue Murphy’s tax-and-spend agenda or if Ciattarelli can restore affordability and safety to the Garden State.