Booker Decries ‘Attack Ads’ Aimed At Murphy: NJ Governor Election

NEWARK, NJ — Gov. Phil Murphy’s re-election campaign in New Jersey has been getting support from some of the nation’s most recognizable Democratic Party members, including President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Barack Obama.

And Thursday – less than two weeks away from Election Day – the governor got another push of support from Sen. Cory Booker.

In an email, Booker asked people to donate to the New Jersey Democratic Party to help sway the gubernatorial election, as well as other races for the state Legislature and dozens of local offices.

Booker wrote:

“Governor Phil Murphy’s campaign to keep New Jersey blue is coming down the home stretch, and one new poll shows him in a ‘dead heat’ with the Republican challenger — an anti-mask, pro-Trump Republican who has no business leading our state. This race should not be close, but special interests and their allies have been pouring money into attack ads, flooding the airwaves and Facebook feeds, all to try to mislead voters. We can’t take any chances here. Governor Murphy’s campaign and New Jersey Democrats up and down the ballot need the resources to be able to fight back against these kinds of attacks. They cannot afford to slow down now, with just 12 days until Election Day and everything on the line.”

In addition to Booker’s support, Murphy has gotten a boost from Biden and Harris, who announced their endorsement earlier this month. Just days later, Harris made a trip to New Jersey, visiting a COVID-19 vaccine site in Newark and a child care center at Montclair State University – with the governor on hand to eagerly greet the vice president. Read More: Kamala Harris Visits New Jersey To Push For Child Care, Vaccines

Last week, the governor's campaign team announced that Obama is planning to come to Newark to attend an "early voting rally" alongside Murphy. The former president also supported Murphy during his first gubernatorial race in 2017. Read More: Obama, Murphy To Hold 'Early Vote Rally' In New Jersey

However, the upcoming visit from Obama – or the recent visit from Harris – isn't fazing Ciattarelli, according to his campaign team, which sent the following email to supporters on Saturday:

"First, the Murphy campaign had to call in help from Joe Biden. Then they requested Kamala Harris. And now, they had to ask Obama to come save their failing campaign. Let us be clear, they are struggling so badly that they had to request two presidents to come rescue their sinking ship of a campaign. They are worried, friend. For four weeks in a row we have outraised Murphy, we have three polls that say we are in a statistical dead-heat race, and Jack won both debates."

The 2021 general election takes place in New Jersey on Tuesday, Nov. 2. Learn more about voting in the election here.

• See related article: NJ Governor Candidates: Why You Should Elect Me (In 500 Words)
• See related article: Obama's Visit To Newark Shows Murphy Is Worried, Ciattarelli Says
• See related article: 4 Takeaways From The 2nd Gubernatorial Debate In New Jersey

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