Ex-Rep. Tom Malinowski is leading the fundraising race in the 11-person Democratic race to succeed Gov. Mikie Sherrill in the House. The primary is Thursday, Feb. 5. (Amanda Brown for New Jersey Monitor)
Former Rep. Tom Malinowski edged out Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill to lead fundraising in the 11-way race for the Democratic nod to fill Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s House seat, according to new campaign finance disclosures.
Malinowski, who left office after losing a reelection bid in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District in 2022, brought in nearly $1.2 million through Jan. 23 for his bid to win the 11th District, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission.
“I’m not surprised that Malinowski has done well, given the fact that he was an incumbent member of Congress and has done this before and knows how to do this. It’s like muscle memory for him,” said Micah Rasmussen, director of Rider University’s Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics.
Bernie Sanders stumps for Democrat Analilia Mejia in crowded House race
The fundraising figures put Malinowski far ahead of most other challengers seeking the Democratic nomination in the special primary, though his cash lead over Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill was narrower.
Gill, who managed former Gov. Phil Murphy’s 2017 campaign, raised $969,103 through Jan. 23, though that figure includes $300,000 in loans from the candidate’s own pocket.
Malinowski had $404,197 banked at the end of the preelection reporting period on Jan. 15, to Gill’s $346,995.
Early in-person voting for the special primary begins Thursday and runs through Feb. 3. The primary is on Thursday, Feb. 5.
The 11th District includes towns in Essex, Morris, and Passaic counties. Before becoming governor last week, Sherrill represented the district since 2019.
A total of 12 candidates are seeking their party’s nod to run in the special election on Thursday, April 16. Eleven Democrats are running and just one Republican, Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway. The winner of the April 16 election will fill the vacancy left when Sherrill resigned from the House to become governor.
Candidates in the special election must file a preelection disclosure with the Federal Election Commission that details fundraising and spending through Jan. 16.
Between then and primary day, they must file notices detailing some contributions within 48 hours of their receipt. They are not obligated to report additional spending until after the primary.
Passaic County Commissioner John Bartlett reported raising $472,023 over the reporting period. He also had $166,271 left over in his account from an abandoned 2018 congressional bid. He ended the reporting period with $260,855 banked.
Former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, who was a Passaic County Commissioner before becoming Murphy’s secretary of state, reported raising $515,341 through Jan. 23.
She reported having $85,363 banked on Jan. 16, but that number may have swelled since. She reported receiving $110,800 in donations on Jan. 22 and 23, according to 48-hour notices filed with the commission.
Way has other money boosting her bid. The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association has said it spent $1.4 million on television ads and mailers boosting Way. Separately, Article One Inc. PAC has put $350,000 behind digital ads touting the former lieutenant governor, according to FEC filings.
“I think it propels her out of that pack of $400,000 because she’s the only one at that level who has anywhere close to a million-and-a-half dollars being spent on her behalf,” Rasmussen said.
The 218 Project, a PAC formed to boost Malinowski, has spent at least $407,000 boosting the former congressman’s bid, according to Federal Election Commission filings. But the United Democracy Project, a pro-Israel super PAC, has reported spending $818,449 against his bid.
Analilia Mejia, who has won endorsements from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and other progressive leaders like New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, reported raising $421,218. She spent little and had $358,121 banked at the end of the reporting period.
Because Sanders’ appearance at a Jan. 19 rally in support of Mejia came days after the end of the reporting period, donations it caused would not be reflected in Mejia’s filings. But the rally does not appear to have spurred many large donations to her. She reported a single $1,000 donation through 48-hour notices, which only capture contributions that are worth at least $1,000.
“For all the strong progressive endorsements she’s got, that has not translated into a more solid war chest, and it really, I think, is constraining her ability to communicate those endorsements,” Rasmussen said.
Morris Township Deputy Mayor Jeff Grayzel brought in $459,674, and former Obama White House staffer Cammie Croft raised $372,318. Attorney J-L Cauvin and Trump impersonator reported raising exactly $100,000, and Anna Lee Williams, a community advocate who was the first Democrat to enter the race, said she raised $26,422.
Chatham Councilman Justin Strickland had no financial disclosures listed.
Hathaway, the sole Republican in the race, brought in $260,813 through Jan. 15.
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