NJ-11: Analilia Mejia wins big in special, keeping Sherrill's seat in Democratic hands

Democrat Analilia Mejia has won a special election for New Jersey’s 11th congressional district, the New Jersey Globe projects, keeping Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s old seat under Democratic control and handing a huge win to the insurgent progressive movement that powered Mejia’s campaign.

As of 10:57 p.m. and with nearly all of the vote counted, Mejia leads Republican Joe Hathaway by a 60% to 40% margin, 77,620 votes t0 52,122.

Mejia’s win does not come as a surprise: the 11th district, which includes famously liberal North Jersey towns like Montclair and Maplewood as well as more conservative suburbs to the west, leans definitively towards Democrats, and neither party ever showed signs of believing the race was competitive. Democrats also went into today’s oddly timed Thursday election with an essentially insurmountable lead among mail-in and early voters.

As more votes are counted, it will become clearer just how well Mejia did relative to the Democratic baseline in the district – and how confident Democrats should feel about their chances in the midterms more broadly. Other special elections around the country have seen Democratic overperformances of between 13 and 25 points.



https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/analilia-mejia-wins-nj-11-special-keeping-sherrills-seat-in-democratic-hands/