Former President Barack Obama speaking at the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)
"President Obama reminds us what we can accomplish when we leaders are unafraid to take on big challenges to deliver," New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rep. Mikiee Sherrill said in a statement. "He led historic efforts to insure millions of Americans and lower healthcare costs."
And taking aim at the GOP nominee in the race, Sherrill argued, "The contrast couldn’t be clearer. Jack Ciattarelli is supporting Trump’s attacks on New Jersey, from terminating the Gateway Tunnel Project to kicking hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans off their healthcare. I am so grateful to have President Obama’s support and endorsement in this race as we harness our momentum to mobilize New Jerseyans to vote."
Sherrill, who appears to be barreling towards an Election Day photo finish with Ciattarelli, announced on Tuesday that Obama will headline a rally with her in Newark, N.J., on Nov. 1.
And former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee in Virginia who's facing off against Republican rival Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle Sears, announced that the former president would headline a rally with her that same day, in Norfork, Virginia.
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"Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year, and I am proud to endorse Abigail Spanberger for Governor. Republican policies are raising costs on working families so billionaires can get massive tax cuts," Obama said in a statement.
Spanberger and Earle-Sears are running to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin. State law in Virginia bars incumbent governors from serving a second consecutive four-year term.
New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rep. Mikie Sherrill, right and Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli, on the stage moments at the start of their second and final debate, on Oct. 8, 2025, in New Brunswick, N.J. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News Digital)
In a state where registered Democrats still outnumber Republicans despite a GOP surge in registration this decade, three public opinion polls released last week — from Fox News, Quinnipiac University and Fairleigh Dickinson University — indicated Ciattarelli gaining ground.
The Fox News poll conducted Oct. 10 – 14, put Sherrill at 50% support among likely voters, with Ciattarelli at 45%. Sherrill's 5-point advantage was down from an 8-point lead in Fox News' September survey in New Jersey.
While Democrats have long dominated federal and state legislative elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are very competitive in gubernatorial contests, winning five out of the past 10 elections.
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And President Donald Trump made major gains in New Jersey in last year's presidential election, losing the state by only six percentage points, a major improvement over his 16-point deficit four years earlier.
Multiple sources confirmed to Fox News that Trump will hold a tele-rally with Ciattarelli ahead of Election Day.
Trump, on Monday night, took to social media to tout that "Jack is a man who will bring costs and prices down, rapidly, but in particular, energy costs, because he knows that everything else will follow."
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rep. Mikie of New Jersey, left, teams up on the campaign trail with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, in Newark, N.J. on Oct. 19, 2025. (Mikie Sherrill campaign )
Sherrill had plenty of company on the campaign trail this past weekend from major Democratic Party surrogates, including two of the biggest names in the party — Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Wes Moore of Maryland — who are considered potential 2028 White House contenders.
And with Obama, Sherrill and Spanberger are landing the most popular and most well-known Democrat in the nation.
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According to a Gallup poll conducted in January, Obama had a 59% favorable rating among Americans, higher than any other living former president.
And among Democrats, Obama's favorable rating stood at 96%.
Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-hits-campaign-trail-boost-democrats-weekend-before-election-day-key-governor-showdowns