The Democratic primary for the special election to replace Gov. Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District has not yet been called by major news agencies, but Analilia Mejia, a former national political advisor for Senator Bernie Sanders, has claimed victory via a post on X, and her lead over former NJ-7 Congressman Tom Malinowski has increased to 868 votes as of Feb. 7.
Meanwhile, according to Morristown Green, “Election workers in Morris and Essex counties said it could take days to count last-minute votes-by-mail, dropbox votes, and provisional ballots.”
The Associated Press and the NBC election desk still report that 93% of expected votes are counted, with about 5,000 outstanding.
As of Friday evening, Feb. 6, Mejia was 676 votes ahead of Malinowski. By Saturday afternoon, Feb. 7, Mejia’s lead had grown to 868 votes:
- Mejia: 18,512 (29.1%)
- Malinowski: 17,644 (27.7%)
- Tahesha Way: 11,032 (17.4%)
On Friday morning, Malinowski’s campaign sent the following statement:
“This race remains too close to call, with thousands of mail-in and provisional ballots still outstanding and yet to be counted. We did not declare victory last night — even after several independent outlets projected the race — because we knew a significant number of these ballots remained. Given the volume of votes still to be reported and the way mail-in ballots have broken throughout this race, we remain confident heading into the continued count. Every vote deserves to be counted, and we look forward to a complete and accurate tally that reflects the full voice of NJ-11 voters.”
According to InsiderNJ, which covered Mejia’s election night viewing party in Montclair, Mejia said that results showed that voters are “hungry for unbossed government,” and credited her campaign’s “ground game.” Said Mejia, “We talked to as many voters as we could.”
Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill, who came in 4th place in the primary, declared Mejia the victor on Friday and endorsed her, writing via a press release, “I proudly endorse Analilia and hope she succeeds in serving every family in our district, because when the 11th District succeeds, we all succeed. Analilia ran a powerful, people-driven campaign that energized voters and built a movement rooted in opportunity, fairness, and community.”
Mejia Wins Maplewood & South Orange Handily
Results from the Essex County Clerk’s website showed the numbers totaling the following for Maplewood and South Orange (all districts reporting but not including all VBM — Vote By Mail — or provisional ballots):
Maplewood:
- Mejia 1,934
- Malinowski 1,421
- Way 804
- Brendan Gill 408
South Orange:
- Mejia 1,252
- Malinowski 1,033
- Way 584
- Gill 261
Maplewood and South Orange combined:
- Mejia 3,186
- Malinowski 2,454
- Way 1,388
- Gill 669
Follow NJ Spotlight News/Associated Press election results here:
11th Congressional District Special Primary Results
