Incoming New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy plans to institute liberal policies in the state and use the left move to show the rest of the U.S. that those policies work, The Washington Post reported.
New Jersey, upon Murphy's inauguration, will be one of only eight states in which Democrats are in charge of all government branches.
Murphy is focusing on automatic voter registration, early voting, and the right to register with a political party on Election Day, the Post reported.
Other states could follow Murphy's lead — in the 2018 midterm elections 26 of the 33 Republican governors will be up for re-election. Republicans aim to use Murphy as a cautionary tale in swing states about Democrats taking power.
The governor won in a state that had been run by unpopular Republican Gov. Chris Christie. The state's Democrats rallied around Murphy, a former Goldman Sachs financier, according to the Post.
While Christie supports President Donald Trump, Murphy said he would oppose the president if the situation warrants it. "We're going to stand our ground on anything we find unacceptable, and unfortunately that list is long, whether it's immigration policy, it's offshore drilling, or it's an awful tax plan," Murphy said.
The incoming governor said his priorities include equal-pay legislation and legalizing marijuana, according to the Post.
"Equal pay for equal work isn't, 'Here, I'll give this to you.' It's confidence, it's participation," he said.
Murphy noted Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday.
He tweeted:
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