Progressive Analilia Mejía takes New Jersey US House special election, giving Democrats another win

Analilia Mejia smiles as she gestures to supporters after winning New Jersey's 11th Congressional District special election, Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Montclair, N.J. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) 2026-04-16T04:02:11Z DENVILLE, N.J. (AP) — Democrat Analilia Mejía won a New Jersey special election for the U.S. House on Thursday, defeating Republican Joe Hathaway on a message of standing up to President Donald Trump and defending progressive policies. Mejía, 48, a former head of the Working Families Alliance who had support from Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, will fill the seat previously held by Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill and serve until January. Her victory is a win for progressives and means Democrats hold on to the 11th District seat in the House, where Republicans hold a thin majority. It also adds to a string of victories for Democrats heading into this year’s midterm elections. The Associated Press called the race for Mejía minutes after the polls closed. Mejía later spoke in Montclair to an enthusiastic crowd of supporters who called out in unison with her that she was an “unbought, unbossed, sassy new member of Congress.” Republicans criticized her throughout the campaign as too far to the left. She pushed back against those arguments, calling for better health care and education and attacking billionaires for having a “stranglehold” on the economy. (