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Editor’s note: This story was originally published by NJ Spotlight News as part of its 2025 Primary Voters Guide. This portion of the guide, focused on a question about school funding, is shared as part of a content-sharing agreement between Chalkbeat Newark and NJ Spotlight News.
This year, voters will choose a new governor for New Jersey. The state constitution prohibits Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, from seeking a third consecutive term.
Both the Democratic and Republican parties have contested primaries to get on the general election ballot for the four-year term.
New Jersey’s voter rolls lean Democratic: More than 38% of all registrants are Democrats, compared with almost 24% who are Republicans. Most voters are not affiliated with any party.
Six Democrats are vying for their party’s nomination. They are Newark Mayor Ras Baraka; Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop; Congressman Josh Gottheimer, whose district includes mostly Bergen County; Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, whose district includes Essex County; New Jersey Education Association President Sean Spiller; and former state Senate President Steve Sweeney.
Five Republicans are on the GOP ballot: Justin Barbera of Southampton, state Senator Jon Bramnick, whose district includes Middlesex County; former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli; former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac; and former talk radio host Bill Spadea.
On education, the eleven candidates were asked about the state’s school funding formula, which has been a key issue in the state’s annual budget. Here’s what the candidates said to NJ Spotlight News.
What changes, if any, would you make to the state’s school funding system, and how would you pay for them?
Baraka: New Jersey’s education funding system is broken. We have more school districts than municipalities and more superintendents than mayors. It’s inefficient and inequitable. We need to move toward unified school districts to lower administrative costs and redirect resources where they belong – into classrooms. I’ll support district consolidation and provide incentives for school desegregation, ensuring every student has access to a well-funded, diverse, and high-quality public education.
Fulop: I propose revising the School Funding Reform Act to ensure equitable distribution of resources, confronting segregation, and promoting district consolidation to reduce costs. We’ll cap state college tuition increases at 2% annually and increase investments in community colleges. Funding will come from restructuring tax brackets to ensure the wealthy contribute their fair share, redirecting funds to where they’re needed most.
Gottheimer: We have some of the best schools in the country and I want to make sure every student, no matter where you live, gets the best education possible. As Governor, I’ll fully fund Universal Pre-K and full-day kindergarten for every child in Jersey. I’ll work to fix the school funding formula so every school gets the resources they need, and I’ll fight Trump’s gutting of the Department of Education. I’m the only candidate with detailed, expert-backed plans to cut taxes and lower costs, including a 15% property tax cut and rebates for renters, that meet our pension obligations, fund our schools, tackle our structural deficit, and are fully paid for without cutting the important programs and services Jersey families and seniors rely on.
Sherrill: We need to ensure all our students have a fair shot at success. The bulk of the formula was written in 2008 and I would work to modernize it so that we are meeting the latest standards and best practices, and helping students overcome challenges like learning loss and mental health. It needs to account for districts that have a higher percentage of students with special needs. We also need to stabilize the formula to address the wild year-to-year fluctuations we see and ensure districts have the resources needed to maintain the programs and quality of education a student receives.
Spiller: The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.
Sweeney: We must fully fund our public schools. Any changes must align with the State Constitution’s mandate to provide thorough and efficient education. I’ve advocated for regular review of the formula to ensure it reflects the needs of students. After COVID-19, learning loss remains a challenge. The state must provide targeted funding to help students who are behind. We also need to fully fund extraordinary education. The current approach leaves both students and school districts under-supported. Thanks to the current administration, public school funding has increased by billions. To ensure these funds are used wisely, we must require all districts to be K–12, and explore regionalization to create more efficient, better-resourced school systems.
Barbera: Barbera’s administration has proposed a 3 fold plan to fund NJ educational system. First, he aims to investigate potential corruption within the NJ teacher union. Second, Barbera plans to review election funding caps to prevent election tampering from the teachers unions to elect offices that will further their left wing agenda in the schools. Third, his administration intends to consolidate district schools for efficiency while increasing corporate tax rates on global companies, requiring them to contribute more towards local education. Simultaneously, he proposes reducing taxes for seniors and residents without children in New Jersey, aiming for a balanced approach to taxation and educational funding.
Bramnick: I would fully fund our schools, lessening the reliance on property taxes by dedicating our income tax revenue to school funding. This would restore all funding to schools that have seen a reduction in state aid and reduce property taxes by an average of $800 in the first year alone.
Ciattarelli: I will set a statewide standard on per-pupil spending, create a more equitable distribution of funds by setting a reasonable spending target for all districts, and allow money to follow the student. I would achieve this by providing a base amount (“x”) for every English-speaking student and additional funding (“y”) for English language learners, recognizing different educational needs. I also support the state taking over Special Education costs and relieve local districts of that burden. Last, but not least, I will hold districts accountable for how tax dollars are spent and ensure that funding is tied to academic results and end the practice of pretending all problems are solved by just throwing money at them.
Kranjac: We’ll implement a fair school funding formula where the money follows the child and where parents and students have radical choice in education. We’ll eliminate the County Superintendent system that is utterly wasteful and unaccountable. We’ll end the forced-busing scheme that radicals on the State Board of Education are working to advance and permanently hold the State Board of Education accountable by electing them on the ballot.
Spadea: The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.
To view NJ Spotlight News’ full gubernatorial primary election coverage, click here.
