Trump’s Narrow Loss in New Jersey Signals a Shift to the Right
Ras J. Baraka, the Democratic mayor of Newark who is running for governor, said gender and racial bias played a role in the election result.
“We’re still in the stone age in terms of our value of women. It just has to be said,” Mr. Baraka said.
Mr. Murphy agreed. “Being a woman on the ballot is never easy,” the governor said. “But a woman of African American and South Asian descent — probably doubly or triply true.”
But Mr. Baraka also said that Democrats allowed Mr. Trump to scapegoat poor people and migrants without offering residents a clear policy message about pathways to the middle class.
“People travel here from all over the world to get access to the middle class,” said Mr. Baraka, who runs a predominantly Black and Latino city where fewer than 24 percent of residents own homes. “They’re trying to get there, and it’s become more and more distressful for folks — and more and more unattainable.”