The Republican wunderkind credited with helping President-elect Trump claim pivotal Pennsylvania in his decisive Election Day win is now setting his sights on New Jersey.
Scott Presler, an indomitable voter-registration activist and founder of the Political Action Committee Early Vote Action, said the long-blue Garden State is ripe to turn red.
“New Jersey is trending to the right. There’s momentum,” Presler, 36, told The Post. “We have already rehired 23 staff. So whereas Republican parties in the past will pack up, go home, not renew contracts, Early Vote Action already right now, in December of 2024, has staff on the ground.”
Vice President Harris won New Jersey by only 6 points, compared to Biden’s 16-point victory in the state in 2020.
Trump’s performance was the best for a Republican in the state since George W. Bush’s re-election contest 20 years ago. Trump seized Gloucester County and Morris County — both of which he narrowly lost to Biden in 2020. Trump also won Passaic County, which Biden carried by more than 16 points in 2020 and Republicans haven’t won since 1992. Trump’s victories in Cumberland and Atlantic counties were the first for a GOP candidate since 1988.
Presler, who has more than 2 million followers on X, has already promised to bring a show of force to Edison, NJ next week after its city council banned American flags from their meetings.The ban was reversed earlier this week.
“We will have a presence at the December 11th meeting, peacefully with beautiful American flags, and we’re going to make sure that every single person that attends also registers to vote,” Presler said.
He said he will “thousands” of volunteers fanning the state in coming months.
“You’re going to see us at New Jersey truck stops. . . . You’re going to see us at gun shows and gun stores courting Second Amendment voters. You’re going to see us knocking on doors at fraternity houses and sorority houses. You’re going to see us going to American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars halls courting veteran votes. And you’re also going to see us at Wildwood Boardwalk,” he said.
Early Vote Action has more than $2.2 million in the bank and no debts, according to Federal Election Commission records. In August, they received a $1 million from Trump confidante and Department of Government Efficiency co-head Elon Musk.
“I would love for Elon Musk to continue to see the work that Early Vote Action has done,” Presler said. “We delivered the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we delivered a Senate seat. We helped flip house seats from blue to red. And I would argue confidently and also very humbly that our work helped give President Trump the narrow majority in Congress.”
The first big GOP test in the Garden State will be the governor’s race next year.
In 2021, businessman Jack Ciattarelli came within four points of beating Democrat Phil Murphy. Ciattarelli, 62, is taking a second stab at Murphy and is considered the frontrunner to win the GOP primary in June.
“Our greatest challenge was the pandemic. It’s not easy to campaign when there’s a shelter in place order. We don’t have to contend with that this time around,” Ciattarelli told The Post.
“I really believe New Jersey has always been a purple state. It’s been tough on our Republican presidential nominees but Donald Trump changed that this past election day with his performance,” said Ciattarelli.
Presler is not officially backing Ciattarelli and said he will support whoever wins the GOP primary.
Ciattarelli is hopeful Presler’s lightening will strike twice.
“Scott’s going to be in an excellent position to take a great many voters and register them Republican,” Ciattarelli said.
