Mejia Got Big Boost In NJ-11 From Belleville, Bloomfield, Nutley: Advocates

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — A heavy boots-on-the-ground presence in three Essex County towns – Belleville, Bloomfield and Nutley – helped propel Analilia Mejia to a presumptive victory on Election Day, advocates say.

The Associated Press still hasn’t declared a winner in the Feb. 5 special primary election to replace Gov. Mikie Sherrill in Congress. With 93 percent of ballots counted, Mejia has 18,584 votes (29.1 percent) and Tom Malinowski is at 17,695 votes (27.7 percent) in the Democratic race. See the latest unofficial results here.

On Tuesday, Malinowski conceded the race to Mejia. Results will still need to be certified before they become official.

In addition to Mejia and Malinowski, other Democratic candidates included Tahesha Way, Brendan Gill, John Bartlett, Justin Strickland, Jeff Grayzel, Zachary Beecher, Cammie Croft, Anna Lee Williams, and J-L Cauvin.

The Republican candidate, Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway, ran unopposed.

The winners of the primary will match up against any independent or third-party candidates in a general election for all the marbles on Thursday, April 16.

BELLEVILLE, BLOOMFIELD AND NUTLEY

Thursday’s special primary election saw tens of thousands of votes throughout Essex, Morris and Passaic counties.

In Essex County, Mejia outperformed Malinowski by more than 2,000 ballots, getting 10,759 votes to Malinowski’s 8,403. Two other candidates broke the 1,000-vote barrier in Essex County: Brendan Gill (6,499 votes) and Tahesha Way (5,353 votes).

>> READ MORE: Malinowski Concedes Election To Mejia, Says ‘Dark Money’ Impacted Race

According to local advocacy group Make the Road Action New Jersey, its immigrant and BIPOC base made a big push for Mejia in Belleville, Bloomfield and Nutley during the final months of the race.

Over the past eight weeks, Make the Road Action and its partners knocked the doors of 11,500 voters and made 96,000 phone calls to NJ-11 voters – primarily in the above three towns.

The results paid off on Election Day, the group said.

Nedia Morsy of Make the Road Action thanked Malinowski and the other Democratic candidates who conceded the race, saying that it was a “massive victory” for working people and progressive politics in North Jersey.

“This win belongs to immigrant families, workers, parents and young people who knocked doors, made calls, and believed that an unbought, unbossed organizer could win,” Morsy said.

Meanwhile, volunteers for Mejia’s campaign kicked off the new year by knocking on doors in Belleville and Maplewood, among other North Jersey towns. In January, she got an endorsement from Nutley Democratic Action, and met with local voters at the Nutley Diner.

Mejia’s campaigning in Essex County also included an appearance at an anti-ICE student walkout in Bloomfield. READ MORE: Bloomfield Student Walkout: Photos Give An Inside Look At Anti-ICE Protest

New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District includes the following municipalities:

Essex County – Belleville, Bloomfield, Cedar Grove, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Livingston, Maplewood, Millburn, Montclair (part), North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, South Orange, West Caldwell

Morris County – Boonton, Boonton Township, Butler, Chatham, Chatham Township, Denville, Dover, East Hanover, Florham Park, Hanover, Harding, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Lincoln Park, Madison, Mendham Twp (part), Montville, Morris Plains, Morris Township, Morristown Town, Mountain Lakes, Parsippany-Troy Hills, Pequannock, Randolph, Riverdale, Rockaway, Rockaway Township, Victory Gardens

Passaic County – Little Falls, Totowa, Wayne (part), Woodland Park

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