Phil Murphy says goodbye to New Jersey in final State of the State

TRENTON, New Jersey — When Gov. Phil Murphy leaves office Jan. 20, he’ll jet off to vacation in Europe — leaving behind New Jersey and an eight-year legacy of pushing the state to the left.

The outgoing Garden State governor recounted his accomplishments during his final State of the State address Tuesday, where he made his final pitch that his governorship was a consequential one.

“New Jersey is stronger and fairer,” Murphy said in the state’s Assembly chambers. “That is the legacy.”

Governors typically use their State of the State addresses to announce new policy initiatives or recount their accomplishments. On Tuesday, New York’s and Florida’s governors delivered their annual state speeches.

In the hourlong, 7,300-word speech, Murphy gave a shoutout to his political inspirations — naming Robert F. Kennedy Sr. and Martin Luther King Jr. — and quoted John F. Kennedy. He touted passing liberal accomplishments that stalled under his Republican predecessor Gov. Chris Christie — like a $15 minimum wage, restoring funding for Planned Parenthood and hiking taxes on millionaires to pay for his agenda.

Murphy leaves office being more well liked by his predecessors but not necessarily beloved by all. An October poll from Rutgers found that 38 percent of respondents had a favorable impression of him, 47 percent had an unfavorable one and 15 percent had no opinion.

And although he undoubtedly remains the most liberal governor in New Jersey history, the progressive wing of his party has grown frustrated with him. Murphy rolled back campaign finance rules, overhauled public records laws and was a major supporter of first lady Tammy Murphy running to become a U.S. senator, which received major blowback from progressive Democrats. Her aborted bid also contributed to the downfall of the state’s so-called county line, a ballot design that gave inordinate influence to party leaders.

During his speech, Phil Murphy also lamented the Trump era of politics. He said the U.S. Supreme Court “eroded trust in our federal judiciary” — citing the landmark ruling that overturned the nationwide right to an abortion (Murphy has drastically increased access to family planning clinics and codified abortion rights into state law). He also condemned the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, a New Jersey native, died following the attack; Sicknick’s brother attended Murphy's speech.

Still, Murphy said he was able to work with Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

“No matter who was in the White House — our administration’s priority has always been finding common ground,” he said.

New Jersey, like other Democratic states, also regularly sues the White House. The judiciary has been one of the few avenues Democrats have been able to use to push back against Trump as they remain locked out of power in Congress.

“When President Trump has tried to attack our communities and our families, we have always fought back,” Murphy said. “We have taken them to court. And more often than not: We have won.”

Murphy may be remembered best as an emergency-era governor who shepherded the state through the Covid-19 pandemic. New Jerseyans view him positively for that, although the state-run veterans homes saw disproportionately high death rates, which the Biden Justice Department said violated residents’ constitutional rights.

There were some left-leaning accomplishments Murphy left out of his speech. He didn’t mention legalizing cannabis, a tumultuous debate that sucked up a key part of Murphy’s first term. He also made only a single mention of immigration, which has been top of mind nationally with the Trump administration dialing up deportation efforts. State lawmakers on Monday sent a bill package of anti-ICE bills to Murphy’s desk, although it’s unclear if he will sign the most high-profile parts of the package.

The governor made an implicit reference to Christie — saying the state was in “dire need of a turnaround” when he was sworn in as governor in 2018. Murphy touted nine consecutive credit rating upgrades after a record 11 downgrades under Christie.

The governor also touted reestablishing — and growing — the state’s film and television industry, with industrial giants Netflix and Lionsgate building studios. His overall unemployment goals fell short of hopes, though: When Murphy entered office in 2018, the unemployment rate was at 4.9 percent. As of November 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate is at 5.4 percent — the second highest in the country.

The speech was replete with Murphy-isms. He made several to the state being “stronger and fairer” — an often-used catchphrase of his governorship. Other Murphy cliches included describing his upbringing in suburban Boston as “middle class on a good day” and saying he was “shamelessly fishing for applause.”

Perhaps the biggest second-term accomplishment for Murphy is a law that effectively bans phones in schools, which proponents say will boost youth mental health and help students pay attention in schools. The governor took that a step further Tuesday, endorsing Australia's push to bar kids under 16 years old from social media.

“A policy like this raises no shortage of questions,” he said. “Questions about enforcement and even the limits of government. But, in my view: It’s the kind of big swing we need to take in New Jersey and as a country.”

Murphy will transfer power to Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill, a fellow Democrat, next week. He leaves office as the first Democratic governor since the 1970s to win reelection, but with no clear political future. While he was rumored to mull a run for president — and twice played a national role as the chair of the Democratic Governors Association — he told POLITICO this week he “would not advise that you bet” on him seeking the White House.

Murphy has made clear to reporters in exit interviews that he intends to retreat from the public eye. The former U.S. ambassador to Germany, with homes there and in Italy, has said he plans to “turn the keys over and jump on a plane” to Europe.

“I'm a big believer when you're done, you're done,” Murphy told POLITICO.