Republican Jack Ciattarelli Can’t Outrun His LGBTQ Record In The New Jersey Governor’s Race
Jack Ciattarelli’s trying to talk like an ally, but his record on queer and trans rights still speaks louder than he does.
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Jack Ciattarelli’s campaign for New Jersey governor has been all over the map when it comes to LGBTQ rights. The Republican candidate insists he supports same-sex marriage; yet his words, votes, and campaign choices tell a more complicated story that continues to raise questions for queer New Jerseyans wondering where he truly stands.
The most recent controversy came after remarks from Ibrar Nadeem, Ciattarelli’s executive director for Muslim relations, during an October 18 event called “Muslims4Jack.” Nadeem told the audience, “We want to have a ban on same-sex marriage. And I know my brother voted against it. And he will do it again.” He went on to say, “We talk about family. A family comes into place when a man and a woman get married without the same sex. We oppose same-sex, we oppose same-sex marriage.”
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Rather than challenge those comments in the moment, Ciattarelli took the microphone and praised Nadeem. “Dr. Ibrar Nadeem. Just once, I wish you’d say exactly what’s on your mind. Let’s hear it one time, one more time for the doctor,” he said. Later, as the backlash grew, Ciattarelli defended himself online. “Do you ever get tired of lying @MikieSherrill? You know I support same sex marriage,” he wrote on X, responding to criticism from Democratic opponent Mikie Sherrill. He argued that Nadeem’s comments were mischaracterized, claiming they were about the criticism Nadeem receives for working across religious lines, not Cittarelli’s opposition to LGBTQ rights.
Ciattarelli’s record complicates that defense. As a state assemblyman in 2012, he voted against legalizing same-sex marriage in New Jersey, calling civil unions “adequate.” The following year, when a court ruling legalized marriage equality statewide, he criticized the decision. Though he now says he supports same-sex marriage, his history and policy priorities tell a story that does not align neatly with that claim.
During his 2021 campaign for governor, Ciattarelli promised to roll back New Jersey’s LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum. “When I’m governor, you won’t have to deal with it, but we don’t teach gender ID and sexual orientation to kindergartens,” he told a crowd that summer. “In the sixth grade, we don’t teach sodomy. And we’re going to push back on the LGBTQ curriculum. It goes too far.” The comment sparked widespread outrage, with LGBTQ advocates calling it misleading and inflammatory.
Ciattarelli’s opposition to trans rights has also been consistent. In a May interview with the USA TODAY Network, he said, “I oppose discrimination in all its forms. But I also oppose extreme measures that negatively impact women and girls, like allowing males to play women’s sports.” He has repeatedly vowed to repeal a state policy that protects trans students from being forcibly outed to their parents. “I would repeal Policy 5726 on day one and would replace the entire State Board of Education,” he said. “School districts should never cut parents out from decisions about their own child.”
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Advocacy group Garden State Equality called his campaign tactics “a desperate attempt to revive Jack’s long record of attacking LGBTQ+ New Jerseyans — built on blatant misinformation and the same tired, debunked tropes we’ve heard for years.” Executive director Christian Fuscarino accused Ciattarelli of “following the Trump playbook” by “stoking fear, sowing division, and trying to erase LGBTQ+ historical figures from our classrooms.”
That criticism came after Ciattarelli’s campaign aired a series of digital ads attacking Sherrill for backing New Jersey’s LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum law. The ads took her debate comments about parental oversight out of context, cutting her explanation that parents “have the right to oversee their children’s education.” The framing suggested Sherrill wanted to force lessons about sexuality and gender on students, a message that echoed national right-wing talking points.
“New Jersey deserves leaders who uplift children — not weaponize our identities for political gain,” Garden State Equality’s deputy director Brielle Winslow-Majette said in a statement.
As the race tightens, Ciattarelli’s awkward balancing act of affirming support for marriage equality while rejecting the policies that support queer students and trans people could determine how much trust he earns beyond his conservative base. For LGBTQ voters who have watched hard-won rights come under renewed attack across the country, his campaign’s contradictions are impossible to ignore.
