Trenton, New Jersey - Democratic Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill won the race for New Jersey's governor's mansion on Tuesday, US media projected, in another contest seen as an early test of President Donald Trump's popularity a year after his re-election to the White House.

Sherrill, a former Navy pilot who leaned on her national security credentials, defeated Republican businessman and former state assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, who was endorsed by Trump after the June primaries.

The race became increasingly tight in the home stretch, with some polling showing it as a margin-of-error tussle that could go either way.

But Trump's decision to freeze funding for the Hudson Tunnel project – a vital link between New Jersey and New York – was seen as an important boost for Sherrill, who had built up a double-digit lead by the time her race was called.

Sherrill has been representing New Jersey's 11th district in Congress since 2019 and is seen as a centrist Democrat.

Her victory comes on the heels of Democrat Abigail Spanberger's win in the Virginia gubernatorial race, which was similarly seen as a key signal of voters' feelings about the second Trump administration.