Free Republic

Former Dumont Mayor Andrew LaBruno, charged with drugging and raping a teenage boy, will remain at the Bergen County jail until at least November 26 – the day before Thanksgiving — after a judge moved his first appearance bail hearing originally set for tomorrow morning. Prosecutors allege that LaBruno sprayed an unknown substance into his hand and placed it over the mouth of a teenage boy, causing the incapacitated victim to become dizzy, and then forced him to perform ...

Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill, a staunch advocate for unrestricted abortion, won New Jersey’s gubernatorial race Tuesday night, defeating Republican Jack Ciattarelli in a contest that pro-life leaders decried as a setback for vulnerable unborn children. With nearly all votes counted, Sherrill captured 53% of the vote to Ciattarelli’s 46%, according to projections. The victory extends Democratic control of the governor’s mansion for a third consecutive term — the first such streak for the party in New Jersey since 1961 — and positions Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot and federal prosecutor, to succeed pro-abortion Gov. Phil Murphy in January. Sherrill’s...

A former Navy pilot, first elected to Congress in 2018, will be New Jersey's next governor. Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill defeated former Republican Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, according to a race call by The Associated Press, capping a closely-watched gubernatorial election that some polls predicted would be a coin flip. Sherrill's victory marks the first time since the 1960s that New Jersey voters have elected a governor from the same party three terms in a row. Her victory is also the second major win for Democrats on Tuesday, following Abigail Spanberger's win for Virginia governor. The race was also one of...

We are tracking who is casting ballots ahead of Election Day for the mayor’s race in New York City and governors’ races in New Jersey and Virginia. Here, we are comparing voters who have cast ballots so far with the makeup of the early and overall electorate in the 2024 presidential election. One of the most closely watched metrics in New York this year is age. Since the city’s mayoral elections are held in off years (without a presidential election on the ballot), the electorate tends to be much smaller. And it skews older than in presidential elections, since older...

Democrat gubernatorial candidate Mikie Sherrill said she would push for New Jersey classrooms to mandate LGBTQ curriculum with no parental opt-out if she were to become governor. Sherrill made the comments during a primary debate in May, but the controversial remarks have resurfaced in the days leading up to the New Jersey gubernatorial election between Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli on November 4. “I believe that parents have the right to oversee their children’s education,” Sherrill said. “I would push an LGBTQ education into our schools. Parents have a right to opt out of a lot of things, but this...

Mikie Sherrill, once comfortably ahead in the New Jersey governor’s race, has been getting plenty of attention over her stock trading lately, and not in a good way. Her fellow lawmakers should take note if they also have aspirations for higher office. The Democratic New Jersey congresswoman seemed like a shoo-in to succeed Phil Murphy as her state’s governor, an office that trended blue in recent years. Yet she is now neck-and-neck with Republican Jack Ciattarelli, a successful businessman before entering politics. Her problem: disclosures that she spent some considerable time day-trading stocks while she was in office, possibly —...

A Chinese auto executive and an active member of the Chinese Communist Party donated over $65,000 to New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep. Mikie Sherrill's campaign, according to state campaign finance disclosures. Those donations may very well be illegal: The law bans foreign nationals from donating to U.S. political campaigns. (...) "It is astounding that as a former Naval officer, U.S. Attorney, civilian lawyer, and now federal lawmaker with national security clearances, and one who knows the China threat, Sherrill would turn a blind eye to this violation of federal law and likely CCP influence operation," said Joseph Cella, a...

With a week and a half until Election Day and the latest polls suggesting Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli narrowing the gap with Democratic rival Rep. Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey's race for governor, President Donald Trump is stepping in to push his GOP ally over the finish line. While not physically dropping into the Garden State campaign trail, at least as of now, Trump will headline a tele-rally with Ciattarelli on Friday night, hours before early voting kicks off in New Jersey's competitive gubernatorial showdown. "EARLY VOTING EVE TELE-RALLY with President Donald J. Trump! Join us Friday, October 24 at...

TRENTON — New Jersey Democrats and prominent state leaders have expressed concern that Black and Hispanic voters — historically forming the backbone of the party — may not turn out for Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) in her quest to succeed term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy (D). Some have chalked up the apathy as lingering from last year’s election between former Vice President Harris and President Trump, as well as years of failed outreach between the two parties. Others say Sherrill simply isn’t doing enough to court their votes.“I believe that although our next governor has to represent the entire state —...

No Aricle included; top-line numbers. Ciattarelli: 44% Sherrill: 45% Other: 4% Undecided: 7%

To become the state’s next governor, Ciattarelli needs voters who have long donned “Make America Great Again” hats to head to the polls in three weeks, too.

Trump supporters less inclined to vote in an off-year election are key to Republican Jack Ciattarelli’s path to victory in the New Jersey governor’s race. Republican Jack Ciattarelli spent part of a recent rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, tossing bright red “Make NJ Great Again” hats to supporters in the crowd. To become the state’s next governor, Ciattarelli needs voters who have long donned “Make America Great Again” hats to head to the polls in three weeks, too. The New Jersey race is one of the first major tests of President Donald Trump’s second term for Republicans looking to turn...

Toby Anderson, an Iraq War veteran and health care businessman, announced today that he will run as a Republican in New Jersey’s 11th congressional district, currently held by Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair). “New Jersey deserves representation that cares more about the needs of our families, and less about rigid partisan loyalty – we’re not getting that from Mikie Sherrill,” Anderson said in a statement. We need economic policies to control out-of-control inflation, immigration policies that secure our border and keep us safe, and education policies that empower parents ahead of government. I’m proud to have fought overseas for freedom, and...

AUBURN NY--A federal Department of Interior official said the U.S. Supreme Court's city of Sherrill v. Oneida Indian Nation decision applies to the Cayuga Nation's purchase of land within their land claim area on the open market. Based on the Sherrill decision, when taxes are not paid, the Cayuga Nation's property would be subject to foreclosure, Associate Deputy Secretary James Carson wrote in a Sept. 22 letter to U.S. Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-New Hartford. Boehlert had contacted the department of behalf of Seneca County attorney Steven Getman. Carson wrote that questions about the legality of the tribe's bingo halls in...

WATERLOO, N.Y. The Cayuga Indian's 25-year-old land claim will not get a second look from a federal appeals court. Seneca County Attorney Steven Getman says today's decision by the Second U-S Circuit Court of Appeals is another victory for property owners. The Cayuga Indian Nation of New York and the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma had asked for a rehearing after the court's split decision in June. The decision said the tribe was not entitled to a 248 (m) million land claim judgment awarded by a lower-court jury. Today's decision cited an earlier U-S Supreme Court ruling in a separate case...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Republican co-speaker of the state House said he signed off on the content of fliers that questioned the integrity of one fellow GOP lawmaker and described others as "an evil enemy." The glossy fliers, distributed to more than 500 delegates at Saturday's state party convention in Charlotte, attacked a handful of lawmakers aligned against Richard Morgan, R-Moore. The fliers said they were paid for by a group called Citizens for Honesty & Integrity. That name was given to be a new political action committee formed by Morgan's consultant, Paul Shumaker. State elections officials received the group's...