As the fall campaign season officially kicks off, congresswoman and Democratic nominee for New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill takes the lead out of the gate and is seen as more trustworthy to handle a number of issues facing the state, according to the latest Rutgers-Eagleton Poll. But with several months to go, notable numbers of voters haven’t yet made up their minds – and the gaps between Sherrill and former state assemblyman and Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli are smallest when it comes to some of the most important issues facing New Jersey. Fifty-one percent say they would vote for Sherrill if the election were being held today, while 31% say they would vote for Ciattarelli; 5% say neither or someone else and 13% are unsure. When leaners are included, 56% go for Sherrill, 35% for Ciattarelli, 3% say neither or someone else and 6% are uncertain.

Results are from a statewide poll of 621 adults contacted through the probability-based Rutgers-Eagleton/SSRS Garden State Panel from June 13 to June 16. The full sample has a margin of error of +/- 5.4 percentage points. The registered voter subsample contains 579 registered voters and has a margin of error of +/- 5.2 percentage points.