Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew conceded in a stunning election loss Tuesday night, part of a giant blue wave across New Jersey and the nation. His challenger, Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock, was elected to represent the 2nd Congressional District in South Jersey. Photo Credit: Jayden Parente/NJ State House News Service.
By Ryan Conway, Shohini Mitra and Jayden Parente
NJ State House News Service
SEA ISLE CITY, N.J. — Two incumbent Republican congressmen fell to Democratic challengers Tuesday night, as New Jersey and other seats across the nation dramatically shifted blue in the hotly contested midterm elections.
Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock stunned incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew in South Jersey’s 2nd District. Up north, in the 7th District, Democratic challenger Rebecca Bennett, a former U.S. Navy pilot and healthcare executive, roundly defeated incumbent Republican U.S. Rep.Tom Kean Jr. – the scion of a political dynasty.
Mullock’s and Bennett’s victories flipped those congressional seats and helped fuel a surge by Democrats nationwide.
“I don’t have a prepared speech for this … sometimes life is bumpy,” Van Drew told supporters during a concession speech at Sea Isle City’s Oar House Pub. “I’m not going to blame Donald Trump. I’m not going to blame the Speaker. I’m not going to blame anybody.”
In her victory speech in Bridgewater, Bennett told cheering supporters, “If you are a patriot, if you love this country and the ideals upon which it was founded, the last ten years have broken your heart time and time again. … Finally, after ten long years, something remarkable is happening here in New Jersey and across the country: This is the moment we begin to turn the page on the Trump era.”
Gov. Mikie Sherrill made an appearance in Bridgewater, congratulating Bennett and calling the result a rebuke of the current administration.
“It is not OK to have a president of the United States that drives up costs. It is not OK to have a president of the United States who is corrupt and lining his pockets. It is not OK in the richest country in the world to have working people struggling so hard,” Sherrill said. “And you knew, [District 7] that you wanted a leader.”
Within minutes of the polls’ close Tuesday night, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker was declared the winner and headed to his third full term in Washington. As expected, Booker handily defeated Republican challenger Justin Murphy. Holding on to the seat helped Democrats flip the Senate.
In addition, the Associated Press declared Democratic incumbent Congressmembers Analilia Mejia, Herb Conaway, LaMonica McIver, Rob Menendez, Nellie Pou and Donald Norcross winners. The news service also called the open seat to replace incumbent Democrat Bonnie Watson Coleman for Democrat Adam Hamawy.
The dramatic results leaves U.S. Rep. Chris Smith as only Republican New Jerseyan in Congress, representing the 4th Congressional District in Monmouth and Ocean counties.
At the Hilton Hasbrouck Heights, Booker’s ballroom watch party erupted in a chain reaction of cheers when Booker’s win appeared on screen. Booker took the podium to a roar of applause.
“This election is not right or left, it is right or wrong. What we’ve been seeing in our communities, and our towns, and our neighborhoods has been wrong,” Booker said. “It is wrong to have people jumping out of unmarked cars wearing masks going around our schools and churches, going around our hospitals and dragging people into private for profit prisons.”
“This is wrong. It is wrong for us to find ourselves in yet another unjustified Middle East war, a quagmire that has cost us $5 billion,” Booker said. “The distance between us that is the biggest crisis is the distance between the American people and the American dream … America does not work if it only works for some.”
In the 7th Congressional District, Kean came under immense scrutiny for disappearing from Congress and his district for over 90 days, with little communication with even his Republican colleagues. When he returned to the public eye on June 30, he announced he was treated for depression.
At Bennett’s watch party, the crowd was consistently cheering for Democrats all night, every time a race across the nation was called by MSNBC.
Sue Altman, the district’s Democratic nominee who lost to Kean two years ago, praised not just Bennett, but her supporters working hard to help take down the Republican incumbent.
“The grassroots movement in this district has been working hard for a very long time, so if she is victorious tonight I will give her a huge high-five and a hug because she’s worked so hard and totally deserves it.”
Jim Foohuy, a Raritan resident, said this is the most critical election he’s ever seen – even bigger than presidential ones.
“To me, this is the most important election we’ve had in the last 30 years. Even more important than presidential elections. Record turnaround shows how important it is.”
Carol Shields, a Somerset Democrat, did not hold back on criticizing Kean.
“To me, Tom Kean is a complete waste of space – he should’ve quit a long time ago. I want to just see the end of the man.”
Kean’s watch party in Bernards Township was closed to reporters, and his social media accounts were silent late Tuesday night.
Kean was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022 and comes from a lineage of congressional members as his grandfather Robert W. Kean and great-grandfather John Kean also served in Congress. HIs father is former Gov. Tom Kean. The sprawling district encompasses Hunterdon and Warren counties, and parts of Morris, Somerset, Sussex, and Union counties.
Political wags were also watching the 7th Congressional District in South Jersey, where incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew was holding a watch party in Sea Isle City’s Oar House Pub.
The election anticipation buzzed throughout the bar as Dianna Ross tunes and conversation filled the air.
In the bar’s center, a podium was set up for a speaker to stand in front of a tapestry lined with Van Drew’s campaign logo and slogan, “A Strong America.” In front of the podium sat a sign reading “THANK YOU SOUTH JERSEY,” and a television news crew set up shop in front of the display that was bathed in a violet light.
Among some of the most enthusiastic attendees was a man who said he’s known Van Drew for years.
“You’re the first Democrat I ever voted for, I told him,” said Jerry Ward, a Sea Isle City Republican clad in a red baseball cap and Hawaiian shirt adorned with flowers and American flags. Ward voted for Van Drew in the hopes he will support the local beaches.
“I feel like we’re the same, our views align on a lot of issues,” continued Ward.
Van Drew was initially elected to Congress as a Democrat in 2018, but switched to the Republican Party in 2020 following disagreements over the impeachment of President Donald Trump in 2020. He has since supported Trump and his policies.
Only one seat in the Garden State was wide open Tuesday. The 12th district, home of retiring Democratic U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, covers parts of Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset and Union counties.
The race was called early for Democrat Adam Hamawy, an Army veteran and surgeon from Princeton, who ran against Republican Gregg Mele, of Plainfield. Mele has been an unsuccessful GOP candidate twice before.
Early in the evening, the 11th Congressional District was called for Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Democratic incumbent Analilia Mejia, who faced off for the second time against Republican Joe Hathaway.
Meijia beat Hathaway in an April special election to win the seat and complete the term of now-Gov. Mikie Sherrill. In Congress, Meijia serves on the Homeland Security Committee and Small Business Committee. The district includes portions of Morris, Essex and Passaic counties.
U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross was quickly declared the victor in the 1st Congressional District Tuesday. The Democrat has been in office since late 2014, and in prior elections he has never finished with less than 57% of the vote. His opponent, Damon Galdo, previously ran for this seat in 2024 and in 2022 but flopped in the Republican primary both times. The district includes Camden and the South Jersey suburbs.
In the 3rd Congressional District, Freshman Congressman Herbert Conaway Jr. was quickly declared the winner, running for a second term in office. The Democrat, who succeeded Andy Kim when he ran for U.S. Senate, defeated Republican challenger Michael McGuire, is a former New York City police officer who also served twice as a U.S. Marine. The District runs in along the state’s western border across Burlington County north to the Raritan Valley.
Incumbent Democrat LaMonica McIver handily defeated Republican Carmen Bucco for the third time Tuesday in the 10th Congressional District. McIver won the seat in a 2024 special election and retained it in the subsequent general election.
McIver previously served on the Newark municipal council, and attracted national attention last year when she was arrested outside the ICE detention facility Delaney Hall. Federal prosecutors are pursuing felony assault charges against her, but McIver pleaded not guilty and argues she was conducting important congressional oversight.
Bucco is a tailor and a former Belleville school board member.
Democrat U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, representing District 6 beat Republican adversary Hillary Herzig. Pallone has been the District’s long-standing representative since 1993, and sits on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Herzig has experience in Civil Service within the Department of Homeland Security at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The district covers much of Middlesex County and the coastal areas of Monmouth County.
U.S. Rep. Nellie Pou, the incumbent Democrat in the 9th Congressional District, defeated Republican Rosemary Pino, who served on Clifton’s City Council since 2019. The district includes parts of Bergen and Passaic counties
U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez Jr. had no GOP adversary and was elected to his third term representing the 8th Congressional District. The district includes Jersey City and most of Hudson County.
At Booker’s celebration, Molly Kannelly, a Democrat from Rutherford, explained her ballot box choice: “Human rights issues are important to me. … We need to make sure everyone has a fair chance in America. The issues we had with the ICE detention centers made me vote for Cory Booker.”
Democrat Anish Sheth from Princeton, a longtime Booker fan, said he was “cautiously optimistic” about the future.
“I think a big part of it is the messaging and the vibe, for lack of a better word. We need to be united. It’s a divisive government right now. I hope the Democrats can use this to move forward and put this chapter behind us,” Sheth said.
NJ State House News Reporter Zo Terrana contributed to this report.
Ryan Conway is a student at The College Of New Jersey, majoring journalism with a minor in communications.
Shohini Mitra is a senior journalism and media studies student pursuing a minor in digital communication, information, and media at Rutgers University.
Jayden Parente is a senior journalism student at Rowan University.
Zo Terrana is a senior journalism major at The College of New Jersey.
