NJ-11: Mejia gets official endorsement from Baraka for special election

Analilia Mejia’s strategy for winning the Democratic nomination to succeed Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill revolves around consolidating the progressive vote as much as possible, and she got a new endorsement today that will likely help her accomplish that.

After being endorsed on day one by Senator Bernie Sanders, for whom she worked as a top campaign official in 2020, Mejia has now received official backing from Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, whose gubernatorial campaign earlier this year made him perhaps the most prominent left-wing politician in the state.

“Analilia has spent her entire career fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with working people, leading the fights for a $15 minimum wage and paid sick days,” Baraka said in a statement. “She doesn’t just talk about change but makes it happen… I’m proud to endorse her for Congress because I know she will be a relentless champion for justice and a critical partner to Essex County.”

Baraka’s constituency of Newark doesn’t overlap with the 11th district itself, but many of Newark’s close-in suburbs are in the district, and Baraka’s influence among progressive voters and in Black communities is nothing to scoff at. The mayor got 15% of the 11th district’s Democratic primary vote in the June gubernatorial primary, though he also had the challenge of running against Sherrill, the district’s local congresswoman.



https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/mejia-gets-official-endorsement-from-baraka-for-nj-11-special-election/