Democrat Analilia Mejia will win House special election in New Jersey, further narrowing GOP majority

Analilia Mejia won a special election in New Jersey’s 11th District, allowing Democrats to further narrow Republicans’ razor-thin majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Mejia will defeat Republican Joe Hathaway, a member of the Randolph Township council. He will serve out the remainder of his term. Mikie Sherrill leaves office after being elected governor of New Jersey In November.

Mejia, who won a crowded primary in February, was heavily favored in a district with about 65,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans. state’s Department of Elections. Mejia united much of the Democratic Party behind him, including former Rep. Tom Malinowski, who ran in the primary and subsequently lost. facing a spending threshold From a group affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Her win is a boon for progressives, especially Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who endorsed her after serving as national political director of the 2020 presidential campaign.

It also reduces House Speaker Mike Johnson’s majority. Once Mejia is sworn in, Johnson will be able to afford just a single defection from the GOP on party-line votes and still pass the legislation. The partisan breakdown will include 217 Republicans, 214 Democrats, one independent and three seats. California Rep. Kevin Kiley, an independent, was elected as a Republican and continues to caucus with the GOP, although officially he is. left the party earlier this year.

Hathaway and Mejia are also running in their parties’ June primaries for a two-year term that begins in January.

Before the February primaries, Malinowski had raised the most money and was well known thanks to his two terms in Congress representing a nearby district. He campaigned as the candidate best prepared to take on the role.

Later, the United Democracy Project, a super PAC aligned with AIPAC, spent $2 million on ads attacking Malinowski and portraying him as a supporter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, pointing to his vote in 2019 for a bipartisan spending bill that funded the agency.

“If AIPAC had never been involved, Tom Malinowski would be heading to Congress right now,” said Julie Roginsky, a Democratic strategist who runs a super PAC supporting the former congressman.

The campaign came as a surprise, given that Malinowski, a self-described Zionist, has a strong pro-Israel voting record. But AIPAC objected to the former congressman’s willingness to impose conditions on aid to Israel. “I wouldn’t promise a blank check for anything a prime minister would want,” Malinowski said. he told the New York Times In January.

Malinowski criticizes AIPAC after defeat in a column It was published by The Bulwark, arguing that the group’s attacks on him were intended to intimidate other Democrats. He warned that if AIPAC’s vision of being pro-Israel “requires the denigration of even the most moderate elected officials who ask questions,” “the number of Americans (and members of Congress) who pass that test will be too few to sustain any relationship with the Jewish state.”

The attacks on Malinowski probably helped Mejia, who was the only candidate to raise his hand when asked during a forum whether he agreed with human rights groups. Accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza In response to Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023. (Israel has denied genocide allegations.)

After the February race, a spokesman for the United Democracy Project said the group would monitor the June primary throughout the entire term, but no strong challenger to Mejia had emerged. Former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, who came in third after being endorsed by another pro-Israel group, the Israel Democratic Majority, said in March that she would not run again. And Malinowski supported and campaigned with Mejia ahead of Thursday’s election.

Although Mejia has never held political office before, he has spent several years working behind the scenes. He worked to help Democrats, including Malinowski and Sherrill, win Republican-held House seats in 2018, and as a leader of the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, he pushed for a $15 minimum wage in the state.

Mejia sought to broaden his appeal in the final weeks of the campaign.

“He’s done a very good job of solidifying support since he won,” Roginsky said. “And if he continues to do that while he’s in Congress, if he continues to listen to the people in his district, which I’m sure he does, he’ll be fine.”

Hathaway ran as a self-described “common sense, independent” former mayor who was willing to go against the Republican Party. He tried to appeal to Democrats in the district who may have viewed Mejia as too liberal for the seat.

Asked if he sees himself as part of “The Squad,” the progressive group in the House that includes Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib, Mejia said the team he’s most focused on are the voters in his district.

“If you were to describe me in any way, it would be a scrappy New Jersey soccer mom who is ready to stand up for you,” she said.

For more CNN news and newsletters, create an account at: CNN.com