N.J. Democrats clash over message sent by voters
Nearly a week after Election Day, New Jersey Democrats are at odds over what the results mean.
Should the loss of seats in the Legislature for the second cycle in a row spur some soul searching about the party’s direction? Or should Democrats celebrate a gubernatorial victory despite GOP victories in other parts of the nation?
“There was clearly a message sent by voters,” Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-Middlesex) said Thursday. “We’re going to sit down and figure out what that was. In many respects, it’s clear — we need to move forward, we need to listen more, and make sure we have an agenda people understand is being done in their best interest.”
The good news for Democrats: They will continue to control both chambers in the Legislature. But some officials in the party are scratching their heads over how Murphy’s contest with Republican Jack Ciattarelli became so close after months of public polling predicted Murphy winning in a romp (the Associated Press gives Murphy about 65,000 more votes than Ciattarelli, out of 2.5 million cast). The loss of seats in the Legislature — particularly Senate President Steve Sweeney’s ouster — also has them wondering whether the party should shift gears to avoid future losses to the GOP.
“Blue New Jersey might not be so blue in some given districts,” said state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen). “Yes, we have to look at what happened in this election — certainly the shock around the Sweeney loss — but the fact remains that Phil Murphy is still the governor and we still have the majority in both houses.”
Read more: https://newjerseymonitor.com/2021/11/08/n-j-democrats-clash-over-whether-election-results-should-shift-priorities/