Ciattarelli to file defamation suit against Sherrill over debate allegations

The campaign of Republican New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli announced it would file a defamation suit against Democratic opponent Rep. Mikie Sherrill after he claimed during a debate that he contributed to the deaths of “tens of thousands of New Jerseyans” during the opioid crisis.

During Wednesday’s debate, Sherrill accused Ciattarelli of contributing to the opioid epidemic through his ties to training programs supported by the pharmaceutical industry.

“You know, my opponent likes to talk a lot about being a businessman, but I think what New Jersey doesn’t know as much about his business, how he made his millions working with some of the worst offenders and saying opioids were safe, making propaganda, publishing his propaganda while tens of thousands of New Jerseyans were dying,” Sherrill said. “And if that wasn’t enough, he was paid to develop an app so that addicted people could more easily access opioids. And so while he was making millions, while these opioid companies were making billions, tens of thousands of New Jerseyans died.”

“Shame on you. Under the Biden administration, she had no problem with the tens of thousands of people crossing our border every day, not knowing what impact they were having on our communities when it comes to (the) fentanyl crisis, fentanyl abuse, fentanyl distribution, vaccination rates and others,” Ciattarelli responded. “As for everything she just said about my career path supporting my family, that’s a lie. I’m proud of my path.”

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Republican Jack Ciattarelli, left, watches as Democrat Mikie Sherrill speaks during the final debate in the New Jersey governor’s race, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (AP/Heather Khalifa)

Ciattarelli campaign strategist Chris Russell released a statement Thursday evening announcing the lawsuit.

“Last night, faced with persistent questions about her refusal to release disciplinary records that would reveal her true role in the Naval Academy cheating scandal, and pressed on her unusually abbreviated tenure as a federal prosecutor, Mikie Sherrill snapped,” Russell said in a statement obtained by Fox News.

“In doing so, she claimed – twice – that Jack Ciattarelli had ‘killed tens of thousands of people, including children,’ a clearly defamatory attack that shocked moderators, the press and the public,” Russell added. “At a time when political violence and violent rhetoric are becoming too prevalent, Mikie Sherrill’s baseless and reckless accusation of a political opponent of mass murder during a televised debate crosses the line.”

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New Jersey GOP gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli answers questions from reporters following a debate October 8, 2025 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Paul Steinhauser-Fox News)

The lawsuit is expected to be filed early next week, according to Ciattarelli’s campaign.

The Sherrill campaign responded to Ciattarelli’s possible legal move.

“Jack’s response is to hide behind a lawsuit, to not take responsibility. What is reckless and irresponsible is that Jack Ciattarelli is making millions of dollars profiting from the pain of New Jerseyans – publishing misinformation about the dangers of opioid addiction and developing an app to get patients to ask doctors for more medication,” the director of Sherrill campaign communications, Sean Higgins, in a statement.

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“While he made millions, big pharmaceutical companies made billions and tens of thousands of New Jerseyans died. He is clearly unfit to lead and protect this state, and he owes the people of New Jersey answers,” Higgins charged.

Democrat Mikie Sherrill participates in the final New Jersey gubernatorial debate with Republican Jack Ciattarelli in New Brunswick, New Jersey on October 8, 2025. (Heather Khalifa/AP Photo)

Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker and certified public accountant who started a medical publishing company before entering politics and winning election as a state lawmaker, is making his third consecutive campaign for governor of New Jersey. And four years ago, he gained national attention as he came close to antagonizing Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

It was during the 2021 campaign that Ciattarelli’s ties to opioid manufacturers first surfaced. Ciattarelli sold his company, which published content promoting the use of opioids as a low-risk treatment for chronic pain, in 2017.

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At a press conference after the debate, Ciattarelli claimed that Sherrill’s attack was “a desperate tactic of a desperate campaign on behalf of a desperate candidate.”

Sherrill, who was asked after the debate if she had any evidence directly linking Ciattarelli to the opioid-related deaths, told reporters: “I guess he hasn’t really said anything about it. I think there’s a lot we don’t know. I think he continues to not be very transparent about it.”

Rep. Mikie Sherrill, Democratic gubernatorial candidate for New Jersey, answers questions from reporters following a debate October 8, 2025 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Paul Steinhauser-Fox News)

New Jersey and Virginia are the only two states to hold governor contest the year following a presidential election, meaning races traditionally attract outsized national attention.

And this year’s election showdowns are seen as crucial early tests of Trump’s popularity and his second-term agenda, and are seen as key barometers ahead of next year’s midterm elections for the U.S. House and Senate.

The winner of next month’s election in New Jersey will succeed term-limited Murphy.

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While Democrats have long dominated federal and state legislative elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are highly competitive in gubernatorial elections, winning five of the last ten elections.

And in the race to 2025, political history favors both parties.

The party that wins the White House tends to lose gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia the following year, which favors the Democrats. But New Jersey Democrats are also trying to buck history: It’s been more than six decades since a party won three consecutive gubernatorial elections in the Garden State.

Fox News’ Bryan Llenas and Madison Colombo contributed to this report.