Jack Ciattarelli seen campaigning with man present at Jan. 6 insurrection
Joe Belnome, a former candidate for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, has said he was at protests outside the Capitol but denies entering the building.
New Jersey Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli was seen campaigning in Essex County with a Jan. 6 protester who unsuccessfully ran for Congress, according to a video provided to the New Jersey Independent.
In a brief video, Ciattarelli is seen at a park talking to supporters with Joe Belnome, a former candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives who was present at the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol building. Belnome has insisted he never entered the Capitol nor took part in any of the resulting criminal activity. He has never been charged with a crime.
In the video, a person filming can be heard repeatedly asking Belnome “where were you on January 6?” which Belnome ignores.
The Ciattarelli campaign also previously posted a picture to Facebook of Belnome holding a “Governor Jack Ciattarelli” campaign sign on July 4.
In a 2024 interview with NorthJersey.com, Belnome claimed to have peacefully marched to the U.S. Capitol that day.
“I did not break anything. I did not have altercations with police. I did not go in the building,” he said in the interview.
He told the news site that, feeling cold outside, he headed back to his hotel and was not aware of the violence at the Capitol until he saw news coverage of the insurrection.
NJ Advance Media also reported on Belnome’s presence at the riot, noting that pictures obtained by the outlet showed Belnome dressed in a green “Trump 2020” jacket in a large crowd at the Capitol.
“I did not enter the Capitol building,” he told NJ Advance Media. “I can’t tell you how long I was there or what time I went back to my hotel,” Belnome added. “At the time, I didn’t know anyone entered the building.”
During his campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives, Belnome received criticism from the brother of slain U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick. Sicknick died after suffering injuries during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
“He stood with the same mob that attacked my brother, and we cannot allow him to serve in Congress,” New Jerseyan Craig Sicknick said to New Jersey Globe. “Joseph Belnome should be ashamed of himself. He cannot be allowed to get anywhere close to power.”
“To honor my brother Brian’s life, I am doing everything I can to bring attention to dangerous extremists like Belnome and support patriots like Mikie Sherrill, who will always stand up for our Constitution and our democracy,” Craig Sicknick told the New Jersey Globe.
Neither Ciattarelli’s campaign nor Belnome responded to requests for comment.
Belnome previously was the 2024 Republican nominee for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic candidate for New Jersey governor in 2025. He earned about 41% of the vote in 2024.
He also unsuccessfully ran to represent New Jersey State Senate District 34 in 2023, losing to Britnee Timberlake by more than 50% of the vote.
Belnome officially endorsed Ciattarelli in a video posted to Instagram in April.
