Trump calls Sherrill ‘fake and corrupt’ as New Jersey governor's race heats up

President Trump on Friday blasted New Jersey gubernatorial hopeful Rep. Mikie Sherill (D) for being "fake and corrupt" during a telephone rally in support of GOP candidate Jack Ciattarelli, as early voting was set to begin Saturday.

“Mikie, as they call her — the only thing she’s got is an unusual name, other than that she’s terrible,” Trump said, according to Politico.

“Mikie Sherrill looks [like] such an innocent name, but her energy policies would send your prices soaring and make New Jersey even more expensive than it already is," he added later.

The president said if the Democratic lawmaker is elected governor, New Jersey will go in a "death spiral."

Trump praised Ciattarelli on his policy proposal to lower energy costs and referred to him as a "great candidate."

“Jack is going to be great and he’s going to cut your energy bills in half, and she’s going to double your energy bills so New Jersey, just on energy bills alone ... on energy alone, I think Jack should win,” Trump said, per The Associated Press.

After he returns from his trip to Asia, the president said he will "be out campaigning for Jack."

Trump endorsed Ciattarelli in May. The Department of Justice (DOJ) also announced Friday that it will send monitors to voting centers in New Jersey — and California — during the off-year elections.

Sherill leads Ciattarelli by five points, according to a Rutgers University-Eagleton poll released Thursday. She leads with support from 50 percent of likely voters, with Ciattarelli at 45 percent. Another 3 percent told pollsters that they do not support either candidate or plan to vote for someone else. Just 2 percent said they were unsure.

The survey also found Trump to be playing a significant role in the election, with 52 percent of voters calling him a “major factor.” About 34 percent said he's not a factor at all, according to the results.

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin (D) acknowledged earlier this month that New Jersey "is the best place, probably, for Donald Trump to actually stop the Democratic momentum."

“I don’t care if we overperform or underperform,” Martin told Politico Playbook. “What I care about is making sure we win. At the end of the day, we know that the Republicans are feeling very bullish about their chances in New Jersey for a whole host of reasons, right?"

He pointed to Ciattarelli's loss to term limited Gov. Phil Murphy by 3 points in 2021.