ELEC: General Election Spending has Already Surpassed $82 million
With the 2025 gubernatorial general election still a week away, spending by candidates and independent expenditure-only filers has exceeded $82 million, according to reports filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC).
The election already is the second most expensive state general election ever, and campaign committees active in the race still have more than $16 million sitting in cash reserves that could further swell the total.
The combined cost of both the primary and general elections has reached nearly $228 million- 57 percent above the inflation adjusted total for the previous costliest election in 2005.
See the FULL release from ELEC, complete with tables, here:
Also, check out the legislative spending release HERE:
With the election imminent, Democratic candidate Mikie Sherrill has raised and spent more than her Republican opponent Jack Ciattarelli, while reporting more cash reserves.
Both candidates have qualified for the maximum available $12.5 million in public matching funds for their campaigns under the New Jersey Gubernatorial Financing Program.
When spending by the two major candidates is added to spending by independent-expenditure only committees supporting the candidates, Sherrill has an edge- $43 million versus $39.7 million for Ciattarelli.
Sherrill and supporters have more combined cash reserves- $9 million compared to $7.2 million for Ciattarelli.
Twenty independent expenditure-only filers making expenditures to support Sherrill have spent $26.8 million. Six independent expenditure-only filers that have made expenditures to support Ciattarelli have spent $23.2 million.
The committees listed above provided the most spending in support of the candidates.
However, they have received the bulk of their funding from other independent expenditure-only filers listed below.
The two organizations that have provided the most funds for independent spending on the general election are the Democratic Governors Association (DGA), which has given $16.2 million to the Greater Garden State committee, and the Republican Governors Association (RGA), which has contributed $12.3 million to the Restore New Jersey committee.
