Talk about the Twilight Zone.

A question at tonight’s Republican gubernatorial debate – a serious one no less – was who won the 2020 presidential election.

“That was Donald Trump by far. We all know Trump won.”

That was the take of Hirsh Singh, who is trying to recreate Trump’s 2016 magic in the Garden State.

Jack Ciattarelli had the guts – considering this was a GOP forum – to say the following:

“Joe Biden won the presidency. Joe Biden is our president.”

Ciattarelli mentioned the rather pertinent fact that none of the many lawsuits filed last year by the Trump campaign went anywhere. Moreover, as he pointed out, a handful were dismissed out of hand by the U.S. Supreme Court and its conservative majority.

Ciattarelli didn’t say it, but that was because there was no evidence of fraud.

In a normal political universe, Ciattarelli would be the adult in the room and Singh would be the delusional one.

But in today’s GOP, you never know.

Ciattarelli’s grounded comments probably lost him some primary votes, although they should help him assuming he gets to the general election.

Other than that, the debate on radio station 101.5 was relatively civil, although it had its moments.

Ciattarelli, perhaps sensing some danger from an ardent Trump supporter, quickly went on the attack accusing Singh early on of not paying property taxes.

This comes from the fact Singh resides in Atlantic County in his parents’ home.

Singh didn’t specifically address his residency issue, but later on he said that the charge was a “lie.” One assumes his family pays property taxes.

In an attack of his own, Singh asked Ciattarellli why his home county of Somerset recently has gone from all-Republican to all-Democratic.

Ciattarelli didn’t answer directly, but he did say that he has supported Republicans through hard work and by writing checks. He said Singh is just about himself.

This chippiness aside, both candidates came across as legitimate conservatives.

There may be shades of difference but there was general agreement on the following:

The school funding formula is unfair and must be changed.

New Jersey’s strong anti-gun laws should be weakened.

Undocumented residents don’t deserve driver’s licenses; Singh said he wants to kick them out.

Abortion rights should be limited at the very least.

The tone of the debate generated an immediate response from Team Murphy.

A statement on behalf of the governor’s reelection campaign proclaimed:

“No matter which candidate passes the Trump litmus test, the Republican nominee will be too extreme for New Jersey.”

It said Murphy was the “clear winner.”