NEW BRUNSWICK - A former Democratic State Party chairman and veteran of numerous hardnosed political campaigns, state Senator Joe Cryan (D-20) today told a crowd at the Eagleton Institute of Politics that Democrats should step up their efforts on behalf of Democratic nominee for Governor Mikie Sherrill.

"We could rally a little harder," the senator observed pointedly in a room crammed with young politics scholars who attended the kickoff of Cryan's and colleague Senator Jon Bramnick's (R-21) statewide civility tour.

Cryan's comments came after Bramnick handled a question from an audience member about Bramnick's reluctance to date to publicly endorse Republican Gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli.

Please see Bramnick's response to that question HERE.

Following's the GOP lawmaker's explanation, the other participants in the forum appeared ready to move on, when Cryan rose out of his chair.

That's when the Democrat from Union made his observation and contextualized it by noting that not many Democrats turned out for Sherrill at Sunday's Rider University debate. Specifically, he noted that attendance on her behalf seemed less than energetic.

So, while Bramnick may have earned some political enemies within his own party for failing to rush to Ciattarelli's aid in the general, Cryan wanted the crowd to know that Dems need to do more to publicly express their support for Sherrill, their statewide nominee.