Race between Analilia Mejia, Tom Malinowski in N.J.'s special Democratic primary too close to call

The Democratic primary race for New Jersey's 11th Congressional District is too close to call. 

There are 11 candidates seeking the Democratic nomination. With 91% of the votes counted, Analilia Mejia is holding on to a very slim lead against Tom Malinowski. They're followed by Tahesha Way, Brendan Gill and John Bartlett. 

The winner will face Republican candidate Joe Hathaway, the mayor of Randolph, on April 16. 

The race will fill the congressional seat vacated by Gov. Mikie Sherrill. 

Mejia was less than 1 percentage point of Malinowski, with 61,000 votes counted. There are still mail-in ballots that have yet to be counted, and more mail-in ballots that were postmarked on election day can arrive as late as next Wednesday and still be counted. So it may yet be some time before the official winner is known. 

Malinowski, who was endorsed by Sen. Andy Kim, has previously served two terms in Congress before losing his reelection bid in 2022. Mejia worked for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders as his political director during his 2020 presidential bid, and is endorsed by him and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. 

The district includes portions of Essex, Morris and Passaic counties.