by Rebecca Downs
Vivek Ramaswamy’s gubernatorial election in Ohio isn’t until next year, but in the meantime he’s trying to aid another Republican candidate, this time in New Jersey. Voters in the Garden State will soon elect a fresh governor to replace term-limited Democrat Phil Murphy. There’s a good chance it will be Jack Ciattarelli, a Republican who came close to defeating Murphy in 2021.
On Wednesday, Ramaswamy, who is leading the campaign throughout Ohiojoined Ciattarelli at the Saddle Brook Diner for a tour of Ciattarelli’s restaurant.
Welcoming Ramaswamy with a “warm welcome to New Jersey,” Ciattarelli called the entrepreneur “Mr. Ohio” and “the next governor of Ohio.”
Addressing the enthusiastic crowd, Ramaswamy noted that “New Jersey is a state where there are a lot of Republicans who just don’t know yet that they’re actually Republicans!” He also addressed Ciattarelli’s support from President Donald Trump, which Ramaswamy said was “propelling.” [Ciattarelli] on this path to now unite the entire country.”
“New Jersey, you’re about to show this country how it’s done,” Ramaswamy continued before mentioning the state’s latest voting trends. “Just because your neighbors, friends, or people you meet at a restaurant thought the same way a few years ago doesn’t mean it has to stay that way,” he offered with a grunt of agreement.
While then-Vice President Kamala Harris won New Jersey’s 14 electoral votes last year, her nearly 6-point victory was much smaller than when former President Joe Biden won in 2020 by almost 16 points.
Ramaswamy noted that the Republican Party is “not just about defeating the left” because “we already did that last year.” Instead, they are “ready to save the country.” He characterized the election as “not a fight between right and left, but between right and wrong” and about what it means to be an American. Ramaswamy later talked even more about what it means to be an American, just as he did at other events.
“Next year we will celebrate our 250th anniversary,” Ramaswamy recalled, relating this upcoming birthday to what he said is “a moral imperative, an obligation to our founders, to our country, to our history, to preserve this for another 250 years.” Ramaswamy emphasized, “We are doing a great job starting with what we won last November, but the next step will be the states,” he recalled, differentiating the importance of solving problems in Washington and the states.
Ramaswamy also touched on issues affecting New Jersey, including Covid-19, boys’ participation in girls’ sports and rising costs, promoting Ciattarelli as “the one man who will take New Jersey to the next level, to show New York across the street, New York Mamdani, how it’s actually done in the United States!” He continued to draw contrasts between New York Democrat Zohran Mamdani and New Jersey under Ciattarella’s administration.
Ramaswamy also encouraged attendees to “support Jack,” with the crowd chanting as a way to “restore credit,” “lower costs,” “restor free speech,” “awaken the American dream” and “make New Jersey great again.” Ramaswamy used this as a comment to note that the state is hungry for change.
Ramaswamy reminded the crowd that he has his own race for governor next year, calling on New Jersey to lead by example. “Next year we go to Ohio, but this year you have to pave the way, we are counting on you,” Ciattarelli said.
Ramaswamy made similar remarks to Fox News. He told the website that the elections in New Jersey and Virginia “will set the stage for even bigger and more decisive victories, hopefully next year in places like Ohio.”
Perhaps Ramaswamy’s most vital reminder came at the end of his appearance with Ciattarelli, as they began asking questions, about the importance of voter presence, especially in an off-year election.
“We will get the job done by showing up,” he said, pointing out that it “doesn’t matter” that it’s not a presidential year because it is “a governor’s year. And if you are successful here, you are paving the path for 2026 across the country by showing them how we will do it.”
In his remarks, Ciattarelli not only expressed some optimism about his own race, but also sought the support of the Republican Party in the statehouse. He admitted that this hasn’t happened in the Garden State for 30 years. “So,” he told Ramaswamy, “we’re going to win this race this year. Thank you for your help, and then we’ll come to Ohio to help you win.”
The New Jersey governor’s race between Ciattarelli and Republican Democrat Mikie Sherrill is considered “lean Democratic,” while the race in Ohio is considered “likely Republican.”
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Rebecca Downs is The Daily Signal’s Ohio correspondent.
Photo by LiveNOW from Fox.
