Ciattarelli launches $2M ad blitz targeting Sherrill’s wealth in NJ race

First on Fox: After hours of fiery final debate in competitive and combustible New Jersey Showdown 2025 For governor, Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli targeted Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee, because of her increased wealth during her years in Congress.

In two new ads shared for the first time with Fox News on Thursday, Ciattarelli highlighted Cheryl’s widely criticized appearance on a popular radio show where she struggled to explain her wealth.

The ad launch came the day after Ciattarelli was accused of contributing to tens of thousands of opioid deaths in… New JerseySherrill responded that Sherrill “violated the law,” pointing to a fine she paid four years ago for failing to disclose stock trades in a timely manner, as members of Congress are required to do under federal conflict of interest law.

Trump looms over 2025 election

New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep. Mikie Sherrill, right, and Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli on stage at the start of their second and final debate on October 8, 2025 in New Brunswick, New Jersey (Fox News Digital/Paul Steinhauser)

In advertisements“As governor, I have a plan to fix our state. In Congress, the only thing Mikie Sherrill fixed was her bank account,” Ciattarelli said.

Stains He then used clips of Cheryl from her May interview on Charlamagne Tha God’s popular radio show, “The Breakfast Club.”

“So I guess we made money,” Cheryl says in one clip when asked about the millions in reported money she and her husband, a senior manager at a multinational investment bank, made. In the other ad, she said: “I didn’t. I can’t believe I did it, but I have to go see what it says.”

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Ciattarelli then argues, in the ads, “Come on. Who doesn’t know if they got $7 million. New Jersey needs a governor who gets it. Mickey Sherrill doesn’t do it. I do it.”

Ciattarelli’s campaign told Fox News Digital that it will spend $2 million to run ads on broadcast, cable and streaming television.

Jack Ciattarelli, Republican Party candidate for governor of New Jersey, takes questions from reporters after a debate on October 8, 2025 in New Brunswick, New Jersey (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News)

in Wednesday discussionCiattarelli once again highlighted the $400 fine that Sherrill paid.

He added: “I have never broken the law.” “She had to pay federal fines for violating federal law on stock trading and stock reporting.”

“This is the same old misinformation he keeps peddling,” Sherrill responded, “because he knows I don’t trade individual stocks, and he knows I’ve gone above and beyond. He also knows he’s peddling some bullshit numbers, but he actually knows a lot about my finances because they’re all tied to the dollar.”

Questions about Sherrill’s wealth were first raised by her rivals earlier this year in the Democratic primary race. But her responses in an interview with “The Breakfast Club” amplified the controversy, with Chiattarelli’s campaign and allied Republican groups harshly criticizing the four-term federal lawmaker.

Blue state Republican rips Democratic rival for blaming ‘everything on Trump’

Ciattarelli’s claims have been amplified in recent weeks as the race between the candidates has become increasingly bitter and personal.

Sherrill’s campaign denounced the attacks, and her spokesman, Sean Higgins, said his candidate was transparent, and said Ciattarelli, who is also a millionaire, was not.

“Mickey does not own or trade individual stocks, and has gone so far as to release the exact dollar-for-dollar values ​​of her funds,” Higgins said in a statement.

Rep. Mickey Sherrill, Democratic candidate for governor of New Jersey, takes questions from reporters after a debate on October 8, 2025 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News)

Ciattarelli, a former state legislator and certified public accountant who founded a medical publishing company before entering politics and winning election as a state legislator, is making his third consecutive run for governor of New Jersey. Four years ago, he attracted national attention when he came close to upsetting Murphy.

During the 2021 campaign, Ciattarelli’s relationship with opioid manufacturers first came to light. Ciattarelli sold his company, which published content promoting the use of opioids as a low-risk treatment for chronic pain, in 2017.

“You are trying to distract from the fact that you have killed tens of thousands of people by printing your disinformation and propaganda,” Sherrill accused. “I think our kids deserve better. I think the people you got addicted to and died deserve better than you.”

Voters’ reaction to the final debate for Jersey’s new governor

“As far as everything she just said about my career, where I support my family, that’s a lie. I’m proud of my career,” Ciattarelli responded.

“Shame on you,” Ciattarelli added.

“Shame on you, sir,” Cheryl responded.

Cittarelli then blamed the fentanyl crisis on former President Joe Biden’s “open borders” policies.

In a press conference after the debate, he claimed that Sherrill’s attack was “a desperate tactic by a desperate campaign on behalf of a desperate candidate.”

Sherrill was asked after the discussion if she had evidence directly linking Ciattarelli to opioid deaths, telling reporters: “I think he hasn’t really expressed anything about it. I think there’s a lot that we don’t know. And I think he’s still not very transparent about it.”

The two candidates also disagreed over the inappropriate release of Sherrill’s military records and why she was barred from attending her 1994 Naval Academy graduation, and the president’s support. Donald Trump. They traded accusations on key issues, including New Jersey’s high energy costs, property taxes, immigration, and the ongoing federal government shutdown.

New Jersey and Virginia are the only states that retain it State gubernatorial contests The year follows a presidential election, which means the races traditionally attract significant national attention.

The showdowns at the ballot box this year are seen as critical early tests of Trump’s popularity and his second-term agenda, and are considered key gauges ahead of next year’s House and Senate midterm elections.

The winner of next month’s election in New Jersey will succeed Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

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While Democrats have long dominated federal and state elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are fiercely competitive in gubernatorial contests, winning five of the past 10 elections.

In the 2025 race, political history favors both parties.

The party that wins the White House tends to lose the gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia the following year, which favors the Democrats. But New Jersey Democrats are also trying to buck history, as it has been more than six decades since one party won three consecutive gubernatorial elections in the Garden State.