MADISON – The thinking among political observers is that Mikie Sherrill is running for governor next year.

So, what does she think about state issues?

Peter Woolley, a political science professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University, deftly brought that up Tuesday afternoon when Sherrill took part in the university’s continuing series of conversations with prospective candidates.

Woolley noted that New Jersey already has had a governor who was originally from Virginia. That was Woodrow Wilson, who quite obviously, also became president. Sherrill was born in Alexandria, Va.

Woolley may have been pushing the envelope a bit by bringing up a guy who became president, but the governor’s talk involving the CD-11 congresswoman is quite real.

The issues Woolley brought up, generally speaking, centered on transparency and access to government – recent legislation “reforming” the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) and the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).

Both were opposed by liberal and conservative organizations.

Sherrill said she agrees with the critics.

Some of the changes regarding ELEC shortened the time period for investigations and also gave the governor more control over its membership.

Sherrill said she doesn’t think the reforms give anyone a great deal of confidence, adding that ELEC now seems “very weak.”

The changes to the Open Public Records Act were even more controversial. Among other things, the changes give government agencies more leeway to deny requests if they think releasing information would lead to an employee being “harassed.”

The congresswoman acknowledged that some municipal officials have been overwhelmed by repeated requests. However, she added:

“But at the same time, I think the supposed reform that was made on OPRA feels as if the state that very much needs transparency in government  – that very much needs to have oversight over government for various reasons – has now been undermined.”

Her response drew scattered applause from a crowd of about 200 seated in a spacious room in the old Vanderbilt-Twombly estate, an epic structure  – now called the Mansion at FDU – right out of the Gilded Age. The audience to see Sherrill was the largest so far in the FDU series of speakers.

Sherrill said the success of Andy Kim’s campaign shows that the public truly wants transparency. Kim won the party’s U.S. Senate nomination over Tammy Murphy by appealing to the grassroots of the Democratic Party. Just for the record, Sherrill, like most Democratic elected officials, originally endorsed Murphy.

Kim, by the way, will speak at FDU next week. Curtis Bashaw, his Republican opponent, is set to appear later in September.

Sherrill was also asked about state finances.

She agreed with a questioner who proposed an economic conference to chart the course ahead and also criticized the state’s budget process for its lack of transparency. She said it makes no sense to put the budget together so quickly that legislators may not know what they are voting for.

In addition to improving New Jersey’s fiscal health, Sherrill said the state must continue to support and bolster an education system that most surveys rank as among the best in the nation. She said it’s the state’s strong public schools that keep many businesses in New Jersey.

No discussion about the state would be complete without mentioning New Jersey Transit.

From her current perch in Congress, Sherrill says she brings up complaints about the service regularly with state transit officials, the Biden Administration and Amtrak. With the Gateway project underway, the future seems better.

But how about today?

No easy answer there, but reflecting on recent transit woes, the congresswoman said:

“We can’t have the summer of hell for the next 10 years.”

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