Polls open in closely watched governors' races in US states of Virginia, New Jersey

Voters in the bellwether US states of Virginia and New Jersey headed to the polls Tuesday for what are seen as key off-year races for the states' governors' seats.

Polling stations opened at 6 am local time (1100GMT) and are set to close at 7 pm in Virginia and 8 pm (1600-1700GMT) in New Jersey. The two contests — in states currently led by Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and Democratic Governor Phil Murphy of New Jersey, neither of them seeking reelection — are expected to gauge both parties' momentum ahead of the 2026 midterms, and some 10 months into President Donald Trump's second term.

In New Jersey, Democrat Mikie Sherrill holds a narrow 0.9-point lead over Republican Jack Ciattarelli, according to an Oct. 25-30 AtlasIntel poll. Former President Barack Obama joined Sherrill at a Nov. 1 rally as Democrats lead Republicans in early voting by 41 points, CNN reported.

In Virginia, Democrat Abigail Spanberger leads Republican Winsome Earle-Sears 56% to 44% in a Hill/Emerson poll.

Campaigning for the two Republican candidates, President Donald Trump hosted two tele-rallies on Monday to urge supporters to go to the polls.

Tuesday also includes a closely watched mayoral election in New York City, where frontrunner Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani faces former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.