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Malinowski and Mejia locked in tight race for nomination to replace Gov. Mikie Sherrill in Congress
By
Mike Hayes
Published Feb 5, 2026
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Tom Malinowski for Congress/Analilia Mejia for New Jersey
By
Mike Hayes
Published Feb 5, 2026
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Two Democrats were locked in a tight race in New Jersey late Thursday night in the closely watched primary in the special election to fill New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s vacated seat in Congress.
Progressive labor activist and organizer Analilia Mejia and former 7th District Rep. Tom Malinowski distanced themselves from the crowded field of 11 Democrats. Only roughly 500 votes separated the two candidates by 11 p.m.
Democratic enthusiasm was on full display in the district following Sherrill’s decisive victory in last year’s gubernatorial election. By 6 p.m. Thursday, overall vote totals had eclipsed those of the 2024 Democratic primary. In November, Sherrill was thrust to victory by the highest turnout in an off-year gubernatorial election in the state in over two decades.
Malinowski had quickly vaulted to what looked like a healthy 9-point lead over the Mejia in early tallies of vote-by-mail and early in-person votes.
But Mejia came surging back to narrowly overtake the former congressman as day-of primary votes were counted. She performed exceptionally well in her home Essex County, while also beating Malinowski in Morris and Passaic election day votes.
Tagged
Politics
election
new jersey
Mike Hayes
Mike Hayes covers equity and access to opportunity in New Jersey. He joined WNYC and Gothamist in 2023. Before that, he worked as a freelance journalist writing about policing and criminal justice. He has written for ProPublica, CNN, HuffPost, BuzzFeed News and The Appeal. He is also the author of the book, “The Secret Files: Bill De Blasio, The NYPD, and the Broken Promises of Police Reform.” In 2019, he was a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists.
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