Mikie Sherrill was a bit ahead of the game and that’s always a good place to be.

It was back on July 9 when the CD-11 congresswoman said Joe Biden should not run for reelection.

Here is a key part of her statement:

“I have heard from people in my district who are united in their concern for our country and our future. They want a leader who can continue to build on our successes but is also able to turn the nation’s attention to the urgent threat that Trump presents to our democracy, to our freedoms, and to our country. When I think of my four children and all of the rights that another Trump presidency endangers, and in light of the recent Supreme Court decision that gave inordinate power to the President of the United States, the stakes are too high – and the threat is too real – to stay silent. I realize this is hard, but we have done hard things in pursuit of democracy since the founding of this nation. It is time to do so again.”

That was a very diplomatic way of saying what many Democrats were thinking at the time, that being  – Joe Biden is going to lose.

Her comment that “this is hard,’ was not a throwaway line. Back when Sherrill was elected for the first time in 2018, Biden campaigned for her in Morris County.

We know now that things, or rather the polls, only got worse. Upon leaving the race on Sunday, Biden was behind in every competitive state and struggling in some states that just about always vote Democratic.

As obvious as her sentiments were, Sherrill was way in front of party leaders. That’s really not hard to do sometimes.

After all, the status quo is what party leaders like. We saw that in New Jersey earlier this year when the Democratic organization so quickly embraced Tammy Murphy’s U.S. Senate campaign.

And we saw it again with the reluctance of so many to stick with Biden despite his obvious flaws.

What seems amusing now is the response two weeks ago by Christian Bollwage, the mayor of Elizabeth.

He criticized Sherrill’s call for Biden to drop out, saying:

“Either Trump or Biden? I’m with the president. I never want to rely on Mikie Sherrill’s support.”

He added on social media that Sherrill’s statement was meaningless.

Well, not anymore.

Interestingly, Sherrill previously has shown a willingness to break away from the pack. Again back during the 2018 campaign, she said she would not support Nancy Pelosi for another term as Speaker. And she did not.

Kamala Harris’ ascension to the top spot on the Dems’ 2024 ticket has not been assured, but it does seem like a foregone conclusion.

That brings attention to the pick for vice president. One name out there is Mark Kelly, the senator from Arizona and the husband of former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt in 2011.

Both Kelly and Giffords campaigned for the now-congresswoman in 2018 because of her support for better gun laws.

Kelly, who also is a former astronaut, grew up in West Orange, proving again that there is always a New Jersey connection.