Ciattarelli blasts Sherrill for energy hypocrisy as NJ ratepayers suffer under soaring utility costs
Trenton, NJ – Jack Ciattarelli isn’t holding back.
With just 75 days to go before voters hit the polls, the Republican gubernatorial candidate is hammering Rep. Mikie Sherrill over what he calls a self-serving and disastrous energy agenda that has driven up costs for families, strangled consumer choice, and padded her own family’s finances — all while denying responsibility.
The message is loud and clear. If you’re struggling under New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, you’re going to struggle even worse under Mikie Sherrill.
If you’re worried about taxes, raising energy costs, soft-on-crime policies, and radical liberal agendas, the only way to slam on the breaks is to elect Jack Ciattarelli for Governor in November.
In a no-holds-barred statement, Ciattarelli accused Sherrill of blindly supporting “failed” energy policies championed by Gov. Phil Murphy and the Biden administration — policies that, he says, have made New Jerseyans pay “through the nose” for electricity while restricting what kind of cars they can drive and pushing a radical green agenda that bans natural gas and forces reliance on unreliable offshore wind projects.
“Mikie Sherrill has been a lockstep supporter of Phil Murphy’s failed energy policies in New Jersey and the Biden-Harris Administration’s policies in Washington,” Ciattarelli said. “When I’m Governor, things are going to change.”
Ciattarelli pledged to rewrite the state’s Energy Master Plan, ban offshore wind development, and restore natural gas and nuclear as core parts of a diversified energy mix. His campaign has zeroed in on Sherrill’s consistent support for mandates and regulations that he argues are hammering working families with unaffordable utility bills — while she profits behind the scenes.
Sherrill, who chairs the Environment Subcommittee of the House Science Committee, has repeatedly celebrated New Jersey’s role in offshore wind expansion. She voted in May against a bipartisan resolution (H.J.Res.88) that would have blocked the EPA’s approval of California’s Advanced Clean Cars II rule — a sweeping regulation also adopted by New Jersey that bans the sale of new gas-powered vehicles after 2035.
Under Governor Phil Murphy, the wind energy sector has collapsed, with many projects being canceled due to high costs, market volatility and the loss of federal subsidies that would have kept the wind energy afloat. Those subsidies would have been paid through your taxes and even higher energy costs.
Despite the backlash, Sherrill has recently attempted to shift blame for skyrocketing rates onto utility companies and non-profits, a move Ciattarelli called “total BS” and a “gaslighting” attempt to cover her own tracks.
Few are buying her excuse, even many moderate Democrats are scratching their heads trying to make sense of Sherrill’s shift of blame to President Trump, who has been in office just six months, and Jack Ciattarelli, who holds no public office at this time.
Ciattarelli also pointed to what he described as a glaring conflict of interest — Sherrill and her husband’s personal investments in energy and utility companies that are directly benefiting from the very policies she has promoted.
It’s not only her policies she’s been promoting. She’s also promoting her own personal increase in wealth.
During her time in Congress, the couple’s net worth reportedly tripled.
Their portfolio includes positions in top-performing energy ETFs such as the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU) and Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU), both of which hold stock in firms like Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG), the parent company of PSE&G — New Jersey’s largest electric and gas utility. PEG has financially gained from state mandates and subsidies tied to the green energy push.
Those same funds also hold significant stakes in other major power companies like Constellation Energy, Duke Energy, Southern Co., and FirstEnergy — all of which have posted strong earnings amid regulatory changes and rate hikes. Ciattarelli’s campaign points to these holdings as evidence of Sherrill’s “insider political game” — pushing policy that hurts New Jerseyans but boosts her bottom line.
“While residents are being crushed by energy costs,” Ciattarelli said, “Sherrill is growing her wealth on the backs of the same people she claims to represent.”
The congresswoman has not responded directly to the allegations. However, she previously authored an op-ed in which she framed offshore wind as a vital step in New Jersey’s energy innovation, calling it the “final frontier” in the state’s environmental leadership.
Ciattarelli’s campaign is betting that voters are fed up with what he describes as “elitist environmentalism,” where politicians and donors get rich off of mandates while everyday people foot the bill. He has positioned himself as the candidate of energy independence, consumer choice, and affordability — a stark contrast to the government mandates and one-party control in Trenton that he blames for the current crisis.
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Key Points
- Jack Ciattarelli accused Mikie Sherrill of backing energy mandates that raised utility bills while profiting from investments in the same industry
- Sherrill voted against efforts to block EV mandates and supported offshore wind development under Biden and Murphy
- Ciattarelli pledged to ban offshore wind, restore natural gas and nuclear, and deliver affordable energy to New Jersey
Ciattarelli sharpens attacks on Sherrill’s green agenda and personal profits as energy prices surge across New Jersey.