Lone Republican candidate finds his edge as a dozen Democrats clash in race to replace Mikie Sherrill
As the only Republican running to replace Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill in the special election for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, Randolph Township Mayor Joe Hathaway has the advantage of not...
By Fox News · Fox News
As the only Republican running to replace Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill in the special election for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, Randolph Township Mayor Joe Hathaway has the advantage of not needing to bump elbows in a 12-candidate field like his Democratic counterparts. Sherrill’s gubernatorial win and subsequent resignation from Congress triggered a special election in the blue district. But as a dozen Democrats scramble for their party’s nomination, Hathaway told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that voters will turn to his candidacy to avoid what he referred to as the "chaotic mess" of the Democratic primary. "The district is ready for a new generation of leadership," Hathaway said. "That's what I represent." Hathaway told Fox News Digital that New Jersey voters are tired of the political "spin" and "fighting" in Washington, D.C., pitching himself as the generational leader whom voters from across the political spectrum can look to for leadership. FOX NEWS POLL: NEW JERSEY GOVERNORSHIP REMAINS DEMOCRATIC WITH SHERRILL WIN "People want someone who is going to put the political nonsense aside and get to work. That's what I represent, so I think that is going to be an attractive offer for Republicans, for independents, for Democrats, for voters across the board," Hathaway added. FORMER HOUSE DEMOCRAT TARGETS TRUMP IN BID FOR POLITICAL COMEBACK The Republican candidate pointed to Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani's success in neighboring New York City as an indication that "younger, more progressive leaders of their party [are] moving the Democratic Party toward socialism, toward anti-law enforcement, toward antisemitism, toward bigger government, a bigger system that is still broken." But Hathaway said that "centrist, moderate" Democratic voters and those of New Jersey's 11th Congressional District do not seek that future, drawing a "clear, stark contrast" with his own Republican campaign . "At the end of the day, voters are going to have to make a dec…