TRENTON, N.J. (WCBS 880) — New Jersey Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli's campaign said Monday that they are vowing to stay in the race, even if it comes down to a recount with outstanding votes, despite incumbent Phil Murphy's declared victory last week.
Although Murphy said Sunday to NBC's "Meet The Press" that his bitterly-close election shows he must "connect more deeply" with New Jersey residents moving forward, Ciaterreli's team signaled the race is far from over.
With more than 66,000 votes separating the two, his campaign is pushing to count every vote with the threat of a recount possible.
"Waiting an additional day or two for all votes to be counted should not be controversial," said Ciattarelli legal counsel Mark Sheridan. "Let me be clear, no one on this team is alleging fraud or malfeasance, as we have not seen any credible evidence of that."
His campaign blamed Murphy's "rush to implement early voting" and "technology errors" that resulted in a delay — with approximately 70,000 provisional ballots and an unknown number of vote-by-mail ballots left to be counted.
"At this time, we do not expect the provisional vote count to end with Jack Ciattarelli in the lead," Sheridan added. "However, that count may reduce the margin for Governor Murphy enough to warrant a full recount."
However, Murphy's campaign pushed back Monday that there's any chance for Ciattarelli to make up the vote deficit.
"The race is over," said Mollie Binotto, Murphy’s campaign manager. "Assemblyman Ciattarelli is mathematically eliminated, and he must accept the results and concede the race. His continuing failure to do so is an assault on the integrity of our elections."
Murphy's narrow win, which came as the result of an unexpectedly tight race, allowed him to become the first Democrat in four decades to win re-election in New Jersey.
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