Eleven Democrats are vying in a special primary for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District. The winner will take on the district’s lone Republican, Randolph Township Mayor Joe Hathaway, in a special general election in April. The vacancy opened after Rep. Mikie Sherrill resigned soon after winning the state’s gubernatorial race last November.
As one of the first congressional primaries of the year, this contest offers an early read on which messages are landing with Democratic voters for the 2026 cycle.
1. A progressive labor activist is a major force
Analilia Mejia, director of the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, has drawn high-profile progressive endorsements — Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — plus local support from Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. Sanders campaigned with Mejia in January at William Paterson University.
At that event Mejia pressed for uncompromising change: “In a moment of rising authoritarianism, of economic insecurity, of state-sanctioned violence, any old blue just won’t do. If you send weak sauce to Congress, we will get weak sauce back.” She has called for abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying, “You can’t reform that. It’s not fixable. Get it out. Kick it over. It is done. Forget it.”
Her candidacy tests how much traction a labor-backed, unabashedly progressive message can gain in a suburban district that has mixed moderate and progressive voters.
2. A former congressman is seeking to return
Tom Malinowski, who served two terms representing a neighboring district, is running with an endorsement from Sen. Andy Kim. Kim emphasized Malinowski’s experience: “Tom Malinowski knows the House of Representatives. He knows Congress. He knows New Jersey. He knows how to be able to stand up to Donald Trump, and that’s what I need right now is someone there as a partner with me in the Capitol.”
Malinowski lost his prior seat after redistricting made it more Republican, a factor in his 2022 defeat. In a short special-election race, name recognition, fundraising and prior congressional experience can be decisive.
Other Democrats on the ballot include former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way; Passaic County Commissioner John W. Bartlett; venture capitalist Zach Beecher; comedian-attorney J-L Cauvin; former Obama administration aide Cammie Croft; Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill; Morris Township Deputy Mayor Jeff Grayzel; Chatham Borough Council member Justin Strickland; and community advocate Anna Lee Williams.
3. Immigration and ICE are central issues
Immigration enforcement has moved to the center of the race, sharpened by recent federal-agent shootings in Minnesota. The primary will help determine whether far-left positions on ICE — from funding cuts to full abolition — resonate with primary voters or whether more moderate alternatives prevail.
At an AAPI New Jersey forum, candidates split: some urged limits on ICE’s powers, others called for abolition. Way said ICE conflicts with U.S. values and signaled openness to defunding it: “Budgets are supposed to be about values. As a congresswoman, I will definitely look at this budget and, of course, be open to defund it.” Beecher said he would champion “getting rid of ICE.” Affordability also featured prominently, reflecting ongoing cost-of-living pressures in the state.
4. Regional infrastructure and the Gateway tunnel matter
The 11th District sends many commuters to New York City, and the new representative will face immediate pressure to secure federal support for the Gateway Program — a roughly $16 billion effort to build a new two-tube rail tunnel under the Hudson and rehabilitate the aging North River Tunnel. Billions in federal funding were frozen last October, and litigation has been filed seeking to restore support.
Securing Gateway funding was a signature issue for Sherrill, and constituents expect the next member of Congress to make the project a top priority.
Political context
Sherrill flipped the district in 2018 after decades of Republican control. Redistricting in 2022 shifted the seat to be more Democratic, altering electoral dynamics. This crowded special primary, held on a compressed timeline, underscores internal party tensions between progressive and moderate factions, highlights the salience of immigration policy, and reinforces the importance of infrastructure and affordability for suburban New Jersey voters. How this primary breaks will provide a useful early signal about which Democratic messages and coalitions could be strongest heading into 2026.