In theory, everyone in New Jersey politics agrees on the importance of the Gateway Tunnel, the enormous $16 billion project to build a new rail connection between New Jersey and Manhattan that has recently come under threat from President Donald Trump. The project will provide good jobs, faster commutes, and more reliability; that’s both the Democratic and Republican position.
But as Trump tries to halt the project’s funding, an action for which his administration has given an inconsistent set of justifications, a split is emerging: Democrats are calling the president out directly, while Republicans are proving very hesitant to do the same. As New Jersey gears up for the 2026 congressional midterm elections, and as voters look for who to blame for the project’s woes, that’s a divide that’s likely to come up quite a bit.
Most imminently, there’s the special election in the 11th congressional district, where voters – many of whom commute by train into New York – will head to the polls on April 16 to determine Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s successor. The Democratic-leaning district’s GOP nominee, Joe Hathaway, has been more willing to criticize Trump than some of his fellow Republicans, saying that Trump’s attempt to get New York’s Penn Station and Virginia’s Dulles Airport renamed after himself was a bad move.
“We need to be adults in the room and fund major projects that are critical for one of the most densely commuted areas in the county, and not let a project of this importance be used as a bargaining chip for something that is in my opinion completely irrelevant,” Hathaway said.
But a bigger problem than Trump, Hathaway argued, is that politicians in Washington haven’t come together to find a solution; “whose fault it is is kind of irrelevant to me,” he said.
His Democratic opponent, Analilia Mejia, was far more unambiguous, saying in a statement that Congress needs to explicitly push back on Trump’s attempts to delay or kill the project.
“Trump is freezing these funds all so he can get his name on another building. What is this guy compensating for?” Mejia said. “We need to stop acting like this is normal and start fighting back. Congress has real leverage on the budget and other must-pass bills, and we should be using every bit of it. There have to be consequences for holding states hostage.”
The Gateway Tunnel, the successor to the Access to the Region’s Core project that was killed under Gov. Chris Christie, was officially approved under President Joe Biden and began construction in 2023. Last fall, however, Trump abruptly announced that the project was “terminated”; his administration cited a review of “unconstitutional DEI principles” as the reason, but the halt was widely understood to be retribution for congressional Democrats’ refusal to vote for a government funding bill.
The project was able to continue work for several months after that, but in January, the Gateway Development Commission announced that it would have to wind down work due to a lack of funds. New Jersey and New York successfully sued for temporary funds to keep construction going as the states challenge the freeze in court, but the long-term court battle over the project is expected to last months.
The Trump administration released about $30 million in funds this afternoon, according to Sherrill, and lawyers said they expect the rest of the $205 million to start being released on Tuesday. District Judge Jeannette Vargas, who ordered the unfreezing of the project, told the Trump administration’s attorneys to file a status update on the funds by Tuesday afternoon.
When the news first broke that funding would soon run out, Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield), who has long billed himself as a staunchly pro-Gateway congressman, said that halting the project would be bad for commuters and workers alike. But Kean, who declined an interview for this story, has not singled out Trump, nor did he sign onto a letter led by his Democratic colleagues in New York and New Jersey calling for a reinstatement of the Gateway funds.
“I am pressing for this funding to move forward in full. While there are always competing priorities in Washington – this project must be completed,” Kean said in a January 27 statement. “I will continue fighting across administrations and working with partners in both parties to secure the federal commitment needed to complete the Gateway Tunnel.”
Kean’s many Democratic opponents, hoping to take him down in this year’s competitive election for the 7th congressional district, see an opening. Rebecca Bennett called Kean’s response “lots of words, and zero spine,” Brian Varela said he’s “Trump’s puppet,” and Tina Shah said the district needs “someone in Congress who will actually stand up for what we need here in the district.”
If the Gateway dispute drags on through this year and becomes a major issue in the race for the House, it wouldn’t be the first recent New Jersey election that Trump’s actions have made more challenging for Republicans. Last fall’s “termination” declaration became a major late-breaking issue in the race for governor; GOP nominee Jack Ciattarelli tried to thread the needle by disapproving of the freeze without directly criticizing the president, but Sherrill pummeled him for it anyways.
The members of Congress who may face the same heat this year don’t necessarily have much ability to change the outcome of the dispute, which has now become a battle predominantly for the courts. But if the project continues to come under threat or even falls through entirely, that distinction will probably become meaningless for voters.
The 7th and 11th districts collectively have nearly 60 NJ Transit stations within their boundaries, all of which are directly or indirectly reliant on the rail connection to New York, while the competitive 9th district has another 14. And another political vulnerability comes from the building trades unions that are invested in the project from a jobs perspective; some of those unions are friendly with state Republicans, but Gateway could drive a wedge between them.
In the 9th district, where Rep. Nellie Pou (D-North Haledon) is seeking to win re-election in a seat that narrowly voted for Trump last year, one GOP candidate, Clifton Councilwoman Rosie Pino, blamed the funding battle in part on Democrats like Pou who aren’t willing to “cross party lines.”
“This cannot turn into a partisan issue, because that’s where we get lost,” Pino said. “The president has always been pretty up front on what his intentions are and where he’s coming from… He’s the great negotiator. He put something out, he’s expecting a negotiation back.”
But Pou noted that there was no need for a negotiation in the first place, since the project was fully appropriated and on track until Trump decided to get involved. To act like Trump is only one piece of a dysfunctional Washington, Pou said, does a disservice to the reality of the situation.
“You will get a direct answer from me: absolutely, this is all Trump’s doing,” Pou said. “This is his creation. Who thinks that they are more important than our country?”
Zach Blackburn contributed reporting.
This article was updated at 5:34 p.m. to reflect an initial release of temporary Gateway construction funds.
