Democrat Analilia Mejía and Republican Joe Hathaway are locked in a heated debate over New Jersey Gov. Mickey Sherrill’s (D) U.S. House seat, with support for Israel emerging as a notable flash point between the two candidates.
During Wednesday’s debate, Mejia was asked whether she believed Israel’s actions in the Gaza war amounted to genocide. In his response, the Democratic candidate condemned the mass destruction in Gaza and blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I think my position is very clear, and I understand that many people are conflicted about what we are seeing in Gaza, but the bottom line is: 80 percent of Gaza is in ruins. Can we agree that this is wrong?” Mejia said in response.
“Can we agree that cutting off power to desalination plants is not only wrong, but it violates the Geneva Conventions and is a war crime. Can we — can we agree that we see Benjamin Netanyahu pursuing policies that actually undermine freedom and peace in the Middle East?” she added.
Shortly after Mejía responded, Hathaway said that after the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, his opponent “took to Twitter to blame Israel for the attack by Hamas terrorists.” Mejia fired back at Hathaway, saying it was “not true.”
“Then, during this campaign, she sat in a synagogue and raised her hand and said she was incredibly uncomfortable with the idea of Jewish presence in their ancestral homeland. And then she had the icing on the cake as the only Democrat to raise her hand to answer your question, Joy, that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza,” Hathaway said, referring to one of the hosts, Joy Fox of the New Jersey Globe.
“These positions are completely out of touch with a region that has a thriving Jewish community, and this kind of extreme rhetoric makes the Jewish community less safe and more dangerous. It has to stop,” he added.
Hathaway’s shift in Mejia is notable given her performance in the upcoming special election in two weeks.
Back in February, a super PAC tied to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) spent millions of dollars attacking Democratic rival, former New Jersey Rep. Tom Malinowski, a move that analysts said was an effort to promote another Democratic candidate, former New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way, the party’s nomination that Mejia had locked up in February.
In addition to Israel, candidates in Wednesday’s debate battled with each other over issues including infrastructure, party ideological positions and border security, with Mejia repeatedly interrupting Hathaway.
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