First Gubernatorial debate revealed challenges for New Jerseyans looking for change

A banner for the New Jersey Gubernatorial Debate at Rider University on Sept. 21, 2025. Photo credit: Anthony Orlando

Lawrenceville, NJ - On September 21st, New Jersey gubernatorial candidates Mikie Sherrill (D) and Jack Ciattarelli (R) clashed in their first heated debate over the issues important to state residents. Around 1,600 people gathered at Rider University to attend the candidates’ first of two scheduled debates before the election on November 4th. 

The second debate, set for October 8th at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, will not include third-party candidates Vic Kaplan (L) and Joanne Kuniansky (Socialist Workers Party).

As Sherrill and Ciattarelli continue their race for New Jersey governor, New Jerseyans are hoping to see comprehensive and structural changes following the election. Skye Gilmartin, for instance, hopes to see changes “from the top to the bottom,” specifically on energy, school funding, affordable housing, and clean water.

In a recent Quinnipiac University poll released on September 17th, 1,238 likely voters answered questions to determine the priority issues that could affect voter turnout. Thirty percent of participants said taxes were the most crucial issue, topping the list. Fourteen percent of people cited ethics in government as the most critical issue. Less than 10% of people each said that inflation, immigration, crime, unemployment, healthcare, schools, electricity costs, affordable housing, and mass transit were the most important issues.

The poll broke down likely voters by party affiliation, with the majority of Republicans (40%) listing taxes as the top issue. The majority of Democrats (20%) listed ethics in government as the most important issue. Most of the non-affiliated voters (37%) listed taxes as their top issue.

Similarly, in a Rutgers-Eagleton poll released in June 2025, 621 New Jersey adults aged 18 and older were asked to identify the most pressing issue in the Garden State. Thirty-six percent of state residents “cite something to do with taxes” as New Jersey’s most important problem. Twenty-two percent say “something to do with affordability and cost of living,” with housing, the economy, crime and safety, immigration, education, and infrastructure each being cited by less than 10% of residents.

After the first debate in September, an Emerson College Polling survey found that 51% of New Jersey voters consider their top priority to be economic concerns, which would include taxes and affordability. In this poll, the economy was followed by threats to democracy among 13% of voters. Based on these studies, taxes, affordability, and ethics are at the top of most New Jerseyans’ minds, which should make them crucial areas of focus for those running for governor.

(Left to right) A crowd of people sitting at the New Jersey Gubernatorial Debate at Rider University on Sept. 21, 2025. Jack Ciattarelli standing in front of the press. Mikie Sherrill speaking to the press. Photo credits: Anthony Orlando

Taxes, Affordability, and Ethics Dominate the Debate

Since taxes, affordability, and ethics in government have been cited as New Jersey’s biggest issues by voters, they were each key topics of the first gubernatorial debate.

One Rider University professor from Hamilton asked Sherrill how she would lower the tax burden on senior citizens. Though Sherrill said she would lower property taxes, when asked whether she would raise sales tax, Sherrill said she is “not going to commit to anything right now.”

Meanwhile, Ciattarelli claimed he would make retirement income tax-free. He also claimed he would “cut the size of [the] cost of the state government” to afford a tax cut for everyone.

The most recent data gathered by the Tax Foundation presents New Jersey with the highest effective property tax rate in the U.S. at 2.23%. Eight counties in the state are among the only 16 counties in the U.S. with a median property tax bill over $10,000. 

New Jersey also has the fourth-highest corporate tax rate in the country at 9%, as well as one of the highest individual income tax rates, ranging from 1.4% to 10.75%. Thus, New Jersey now has the second-lowest rank state in the 2025 State Tax Competitiveness Index.

Due to such high costs, as of 2023, the National Low Income Housing Coalition found 75% of the nearly 297,000 renter households in New Jersey experiencing extremely low incomes were also experiencing severe cost burden, having to spend more than half their income on housing.

The ECPIP found that 80% of New Jersey residents were either “very” (53%) or “somewhat” (27%) dissatisfied with how the state government is handling taxes. In the Quinnipiac poll, more likely voters (46%) said Ciattarelli will do a better job at handling property taxes than Sherrill (40%).

Since ethics in government have been prioritized by voters, they have paid much attention to whether the candidates would stand up to the Trump Administration in the wake of its numerous controversial initiatives. 

Such divisive actions include the dismantling of the Department of Education (ED), enacting massive federal funding cuts to Medicaid and Medicare, and increasing mass immigrant detainments and deportations throughout New Jersey. Thus, government ethics were linked to multiple other issues addressed in the election, including education, health care, and immigration, which have been especially concerning to New Jerseyans. 

A Fairleigh Dickinson University poll in July found that more than 1 in 4 likely voters are worried that they or their families will be deported. This anxiety has been felt by over half of Hispanic or Latino/a voters in this poll. 

Also, now that 350,000 residents are expected to lose their NJ FamilyCare/Medicaid coverage due to Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, 61% of likely voters consider these cuts “harmful” for the state, according to a July poll by the Democratic Governors Association (DGA). With the ED’s closure, students nationwide are at risk of losing civil rights protections and equal opportunities.

Overall, the candidates’ stance on Trump’s troubling policies has had a huge impact on voters. For instance, the statewide grassroots coalition New Jersey Citizen Action (NJCA) endorsed Sherrill in September due to Ciatarrelli’s pro-Trump stance. 

Faryal Najeeb, NJCA’s Media Manager, stated, “At a time when MAGA policies threaten the progress and protections our families depend on, we believe Mikie is the leader who will put everyday New Jerseyans first and fight for the values that matter most to our communities.”

As for affordability, the Rider University student from Brick Township asked Ciattarelli how he would make the cost of living in the state more affordable. Ciattarelli proposed exempting residents from income taxes for their first two years after graduating from high school.

Sherrill claimed that the “number one thing” she had heard from New Jerseyans when talking about affordability is that “they’re having too much trouble paying their mortgages” and “too much trouble paying their rent prices.” Thus, she claimed she would “drive down” rental prices for state residents by driving up market competition.

The credit counseling agency DebtWave reported that, in 2025, New Jersey is the 11th most expensive state in the U.S. to live in. Housing costs are reportedly 35.8% higher than the national average, while utilities are 8.3% more expensive, and transportation costs are 4.7% higher.

Rutgers-Eagleton released a poll in July 2025 stating that 85% of New Jerseyans were either “very” (52%) or “somewhat” (33%) dissatisfied with how the state government has addressed the cost of living and affordability. This dissatisfaction over such issues has “gone up by 10 points since 2017,” said Ashley Koning, an assistant research professor and director at ECPIP. 

An infograph of a Quinnipiac University poll of likely New Jersey voters measuring the most important issues to them in deciding who to vote for in the 2025 gubernatorial election. Photo credit: Quinnipiac University (https://poll.qu.edu/poll-release?releaseid=3931)

Can The Candidates Represent and Improve the State?

With the majority of New Jerseyans disappointed over multiple issues, the Rutgers-Eagleton poll found 48% of people feel that the Garden State is on the “wrong track.” Only 39% feel it is “headed in the right direction.”

Following the first debate, Emerson College Polling found that Sherrill and Ciattarelli each have 43% of New Jersey voters supporting them, while 3% support someone else and 11% are undecided. Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said this survey “reveals a tightly contested race in the Garden State.”

Although voters hope for change with a new governor, there is still a mixed opinion about whether Sherrill or Ciattarelli will truly represent them. A Quinnipiac poll states that 50% of likely voters believe Sherrill “cares about the needs and problems of people like [them],” while 44% of voters felt this way about Ciattarelli.

Ultimately, the election’s turnout will depend on whether voters believe the candidates will act in their best interests. 

Lawrence Hamm, Chairperson of the People’s Organization for Progress, stated in an interview that most elections become “somewhat complex” for communities of color, working-class individuals, and those experiencing poverty, noting it is challenging for them to become enthusiastic about candidates of any party. 

“Generally speaking, most elections become somewhat problematic,” said Hamm, “because it's hard for for a lot of folks to get really enthusiastic about a candidate because they feel that, specifically referring to the candidates from either of the two dominant parties, that both of them may have agendas that they don't quite fit with the desires of our particular [communities].” 

As Garden State residents face economic turmoil amid massive federal policy changes, their votes in the gubernatorial election could have a significant impact on how the government addresses these issues. However, voters made it clear that the candidates must provide straightforward and honest solutions to truly represent them and win their trust.