Just months from the first open ended gubernatorial election in New Jersey since 2017, a poll finds that nearly half the residents in the state think it is headed on the wrong track.
48% of residents say New Jersey is on the wrong track, compared with 39% who say it is headed in the right direction; while 14% are unsure, the new Rutgers-Eagleton Poll shows.
Unsurprisingly, economic issues was the number one concern for residents when asked about the most important problem facing New Jersey, with 36% of residents citing something to do with taxes and another 22% saying something to do with affordability and cost of living.
No other issue comes close. Housing and the economy are tied for a distant third (each at 8%). Issues such as crime and safety, immigration, education and infrastructure were all in the 2%-to-3% range; 9% said something else unrelated to any of these categories.
According to Ashley Koning, assistant research professor and director of Rutgers’ Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling, the right track/wrong track gap is the widest it’s been since March 2022.
“The latest numbers on where New Jerseyans think the state is headed continue a trend we’ve seen in the past few years of a divided outlook that has often been more negative than positive,” she said “The current gap between right track and wrong direction is now at its widest since March 2022. And much like everything else in today’s political climate, views on the state’s future are heavily influenced by partisanship.”
When broken down by party, the results revealed a wide schism between Republicans and Democrats.
Nearly two-thirds of Democrats (63%) say the state is headed in the right direction, while three-quarters of Republicans (77%) say it’s headed off on the wrong track, according to the poll conducted in mid-June. Independents somewhat mirror the population as a whole: 32% say the state is headed in the right direction versus 48% saying it is on the wrong track. White residents and those in higher income brackets are all more likely than their respective counterparts to have a negative view.
In November, Jack Ciattarelli, the Republican nominee for governor, will face Democratic nominee Mikie Sherrill in what will likely be a close race.
Upon Learning NJ Is On The Wrong Track, Gov. Murphy Announces He’s Suing Amtrak
After a recent survey revealed that the State of NJ is currently on the wrong track, NJ Governor Phil Murphy announced he is suing Amtrak for “allowing the State to veer off the right track, and onto the wrong track.”
“Due to Amtrak’s negligence and gross incompetence,” Mr. Murphy told reporters on Sunday, “NJ is heading on the wrong track, and in the wrong direction, which means we all might end up in Yehoopitzville pretty soon, or even Tehran, if NJ continues heading on the wrong track, and in the wrong direction.”
“We need to hire a competent railroad company that can get the State back on the right track,” he added, “because Amtrak is clearly not up to the task!”
Sources say that NJ was last seen taking the B15 train heading to Sanna, the capital city of Yemen, which is currently controlled by the Iranian proxies, the Houthis.
A longtime New Jerseyan, who identified himself only as ‘Mr. Howell’, told reporters on Sunday that, “My neighbors, Mr. Lakewood, Mr. Freehold and Mr. Toms River, and other neighbors of mine, are on THAT train.”
Mr. Howell then issued the following plea to the public: “Can someone please see to it that NJ gets back on the right track, because I’d hate to see my close neighbors, Mr. Lakewood, Mr. Freehold and Mr. Toms River, and other neighbors of mine, end up in Houthi territory!”