NJ-11: Analilia Mejia (D) will run with backing from Bernie Sanders

In a long-anticipated announcement that could dramatically shake up the race for Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill’s House seat, Analilia Mejia confirmed today that she’s running for Congress – and she’s already got an endorsement from her old boss, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), who remains a guiding light for New Jersey progressives.

Mejia, a longtime figure in New Jersey progressive and labor circles, rose to national prominence as political director on Sanders’s 2020 presidential campaign. She’s the fourteenth Democrat to enter the special election for the 11th congressional district, and her devoutly left-wing campaign could add a sharp new ideological dimension to the contest.

“Too many Democrats in Washington are selling us out and folding under pressure. Plain old blue just won’t cut it anymore,” Mejia said in her campaign announcement. “We need real fighters in Congress, and I’m running to be a brawler for working families. I won’t be afraid to stand up to Trump or his billionaire friends.”

Mejia’s interest in the seat has been known for several weeks; Newark Mayor Ras Baraka essentially announced her campaign for her at the New Jersey League of Municipalities last week, and she previously filed paperwork with the FEC ahead of her run. Her allies have also begun circulating petitions to make it onto the ballot ahead of the fast-approaching deadline.


https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/analilia-mejia-will-run-for-nj-11-with-backing-from-bernie-sanders/