Newark, New Jersey’s incumbent Mayor Ras Baraka will compete against seven opponents on Tuesday as he pursues his fourth consecutive term leading New Jersey’s most populous city.
This election follows a turbulent year for the Democratic mayor. Nearly 12 months ago, Baraka was taken into custody during a demonstration outside a federal immigration detention facility. Those charges were subsequently dismissed, prompting him to file a lawsuit against the federal prosecutor, claiming wrongful arrest and vindictive prosecution.
Earlier this year, Baraka campaigned for governor in the Democratic primary, finishing as runner-up to former U.S. Representative Mikie Sherrill, who ultimately won the general election. While Baraka is affiliated with the Democratic Party, Newark’s mayoral position operates on a nonpartisan basis without party designations.
Seven individuals are vying to unseat Baraka: artist Tanisha Garner, developer and contractor Noble Milton, community organizer Sheila Montague, community activist Debra Salters, former Newark Municipal Court administrator Nasheedah Singleton, tech entrepreneur Jhamar Youngblood, and Douglas “Rodney” Davis, who has proposed eliminating “casual Fridays” at City Hall as part of his campaign agenda.
Montague previously ran against Baraka in 2022, capturing approximately 17% of votes in a second-place finish that was well behind the mayor. Both Montague and Salters competed for the Democratic nomination to succeed the late U.S. Representative Donald Payne in 2024, finishing in seventh and eleventh places respectively.
Should no candidate secure more than 50% of votes cast, the two highest vote recipients will proceed to a runoff election scheduled for June 9.
Voting concludes at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday. The Associated Press will track vote totals and announce the winner of Newark’s mayoral contest.
All registered Newark voters are eligible to participate in this election. Registration records show approximately 159,000 voters were registered in Newark for the 2025 general election.
Turnout in the previous mayoral election in 2022 reached about 18,000 votes, with roughly 16% of those ballots submitted prior to Election Day. As of Thursday, nearly 2,700 early votes had already been recorded for Tuesday’s contest, with the vast majority coming from Democratic voters.
In Essex County, where Newark serves as the county seat, initial vote reports typically encompass almost all early and mail-in ballots, while same-day voting results come later. During the 2025 general election, Essex County’s first results appeared at 8:06 p.m. Eastern Time, just six minutes after polls closed. The final vote update occurred at 10:10 p.m. Eastern Time, representing about 93% of total votes.
The Associated Press follows strict protocols for declaring winners, only making calls when no mathematical possibility exists for trailing candidates to overcome the lead. New Jersey does not conduct automatic recounts, though candidates and voters may request and fund recounts, with costs reimbursed if results change.
If a runoff becomes necessary, it will take place 28 days after Tuesday’s election on June 9.
