Phil Murphy managed to hold his spot in office for another term on November 3, defeating his Republican opponent, Jack Ciattarelli and becoming the first Democratic governor of New Jersey in 44 years to win a second term. Although a sweeping victory was definitely unexpected, few people thought that the race would be the nail-biter it turned out to be. In fact, the results were too close to call on election night itself, and ballots were still being counted in the early hours of the following morning. Whether or not PHS students agree with Murphy on topics like drug legalization or gun control, they should recognize that his education policies continue to improve conditions for all in New Jersey.

Looking back on his first term, Murphy had already achieved significant victories for students and educators. For instance, he made New Jersey the first state in the country to mandate that public schools provide access to education in the arts, allowing students to pursue their passions in subjects like theater and art. On a different note, he’s also launched a “Computer Science for All” initiative that has provided grants to universities and K–12 schools to foster talent and interest in areas such as programming and engineering. Murphy’s administration also created a comprehensive climate change curriculum, as well as a racially literate history curricula to be taught in K–12 schools.

Unlike Murphy, who prioritizes improving opportunities for students, Ciattarelli’s campaign focused more heavily on rolling back curriculum that educates students about LGBTQ+ issues. At a campaign stop at a gun range in June, Ciattarelli emphasized this focus by controversially stating “We’re not teaching sodomy in sixth grade.” Using a term that has historically ostracized the gay community, Ciattarelli inaccurately implied that any discussions focused on LGBTQ+ issues would solely be about sex when, in reality, they are far more complex. It’s safe to say that Ciattarelli would have worsened LGBTQ+ discrimiation through perpetuating misconceptions.

Ciattarelli’s policies also promote unsafe COVID-19 policies; on his website, he claims that he would “eliminate mask mandates in K–12 schools,” despite the plethora of evidence that demonstrates the effectiveness of masks in reducing transmission of COVID-19. Someone who cannot educate himself or bother to do research about topics like gender identity or the pandemic is certainly not someone we can trust to govern New Jersey.

But, while it’s easy to portray Ciattarelli as a onedimensional demagogue reminiscent of a certain populist former president, some of his ideas are worth considering. On the topic of school funding, he’s made it clear that New Jersey needs a new method for assigning money to schools. Unsurprisingly, according to Carly Sitrin for Politico in 2021, New Jersey has one of the most complex funding formulas in the nation. In most instances, the less bureaucracy the better, but Ciattarelli seems to have little backing for the claim he makes. At a campaigning event in August, he said that his ideal school spending would be roughly $15,000 to $20,000 per student. According to Sitrin, the state average in 2019–2020 was just over $17,000. Another goal he has is to recalculate the education budget to take into account the English Language Learners program, which was a policy already implemented under the Murphy administration. So while his proposition may have seemed new, the end result wasn’t different from New Jersey’s current education policy.

For those that would still endorse candidates similar to Ciattarelli for future elections because of their stances on non-educational policies, think about what environment would be created for our LGBTQ+ peers if education about their identity was viewed as inappropriate. Think about your friends who would be putting their immunocompromised family members in danger by going to school every day maskless or unvaccinated. Think about PHS being adequately funded by property taxes while other high schoolers just like us struggle because they’ve been born in the “wrong” place.

Go do your own research; political apathy is part of the reason why we’re uneducated about issues, and why people are just voting for the most persuasive candidate. Learn more about different candidates, and try to throw away your preconceptions about them. In the end, you’ll hopefully realize that victories for candidates like Murphy are victories for New Jersey students as well.