Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) said Wednesday she will resign from the House of Representatives next week before becoming New Jersey’s new governor in January. (Photo by Dana DiFilippo/New Jersey Monitor)
Rep. Mikie Sherrill used her final speech to Congress Wednesday evening to blast a bipartisan bill to end the government shutdown and urge her fellow Democrats in the House to stop its GOP members from becoming “a ceremonial red stamp” for the Trump administration.
Sherrill said she will resign her House seat next week to transition to her next job as New Jersey’s governor. Her resignation will allow Gov. Phil Murphy to initiate the special election to fill her vacancy in the 11th district, which covers parts of Morris, Essex, and Passaic counties. Sherrill will be sworn in as New Jersey’s 57th governor in January.
Speaking briefly during fiery debate on the funding bill, Sherrill said she would not vote for it because it “does nothing to protect over 450,000 New Jerseyans who will see their health care premiums skyrocket.”
The funding bill does not include a provision Democrats like Sherrill pushed for that would extend federal subsidies for health care plans bought on the individual marketplace. Costs for those plans are expected to rise dramatically in the new year when the subsidies expire.
Sherrill pointed to her Navy background and told her House colleagues she swore an oath “to run toward the fight,” adding that she would “stop at nothing to lower costs and build opportunity for everyone.”
“To my colleagues, do not let this body become a ceremonial red stamp from an administration that takes food away from children and rips away health care,” Sherrill said. “To the country, stand strong. As we say in the Navy: Don’t give up the ship.”
A number of candidates have already lined up for the chance to replace Sherrill in the House, including former Rep. Tom Malinowski and Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill.
Sherrill joined Congress in 2019 and was reelected three times. Her current term expires in January 2027.
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