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OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
7:28 PM – Monday, November 3, 2025
In a moment that blended family emotion with political fervor, New Jersey Republican gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli received an unexpected boost on the eve of a high-stakes election when his son, U.S. Army Capt. Jake Ciattarelli, surprised him at a packed campaign rally after flying in from deployment in Kuwait.
The heartwarming reunion unfolded on Monday afternoon at Murph’s Tavern in Totowa, the first stop in Ciattarelli’s final day of campaigning before Tuesday’s vote.
As Ciattarelli addressed a crowd of supporters in the northern New Jersey venue, Passaic County GOP Chairman and tavern owner Peter Murphy interrupted with a teasing announcement suggesting that one of his biggest supporters came to visit overnight.
Ciattarelli, visibly puzzled, scanned the room and questioned who he was referring to.
However, moments later, Jake — dressed in his U.S. Army uniform — emerged from the crowd, striding toward his father for a tight embrace. The room erupted in thunderous cheers as the father and son shared a heartfelt hug, exemplifying the personal stakes in Ciattarelli’s bid to unseat Democrat Rep. Mikie Sherrill.
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Jake, who has been serving as an Army captain since late 2023 and was stationed in Kuwait, later told reporters he planned to stay in the U.S. through Thursday to support his father’s campaign. Ciattarelli has frequently highlighted his son’s service during the race, including a social media post in April showing Jake proudly pointing to a “New Jersey Ave” sign in the Middle East.
The surprise, arranged by Murphy as a sort of morale lifter for the GOP candidate, came at a pivotal moment in a race that has drawn national attention.
New Jersey’s gubernatorial contest — alongside Virginia’s — is one of just two such races in an off-year, often serving as a bellwether for congressional midterms. Polls show a tight battle, with Ciattarelli trailing Sherrill by 3.3 percentage points in the latest RealClearPolitics average.
Ciattarelli, a Trump-endorsed former state assemblyman who narrowly lost to Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy in 2021, has leaned into themes of change, criticizing nearly 25 years of Democrat control in Trenton for driving up property taxes, electricity bills, and overdevelopment while eroding public safety and education.
Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot and three-term congresswoman, has essentially only countered by tying Ciattarelli closely to Trump, whom she accused during their final debate last month of lacking the independence to challenge the GOP president’s “agenda.”
“Mikie, as they call her — the only thing she’s got is an unusual name, other than that she’s terrible,” he chided. “…Mikie Sherrill looks [like] such an innocent name, but her energy policies would send your prices soaring and make New Jersey even more expensive than it already is,” Trump recently stated.
Adding to the day’s energy, Ciattarelli held a tele-rally with Trump later on Monday evening, firing up low-propensity conservative voters in a state where Republicans have made registration gains since 2021. Trump, who narrowed his New Jersey margin to six points in the 2024 presidential race, had also headlined a similar event for Ciattarelli just before early voting began.
Reflecting on the reunion afterward, Ciattarelli told the press that he had no idea his son would be paying him a visit. The moment quickly went viral, with media coverage capturing the crowd’s roar and social media posts from Trump allies amplifying the patriotic optics.
As New Jersey voters head to the polls Tuesday — where Democrats outnumber Republicans but GOP gubernatorial candidates have won five of the last 10 races — the Ciattarelli family’s gesture served as a reminder of the heart-warming “human element” behind the news headlines.
With stops planned in Neptune City and a closing rally in Raritan, the nominee ended the day on a high note, bolstered by the unwavering support from his “biggest fan.”
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