New Jersey's 7th congressional district

"NJ-7" redirects here. The term may also refer to New Jersey Route 7.

New Jersey's 7th congressional district
Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023
Representative	Thomas Kean Jr. R–Westfield
Area	595.03 sq mi (1,541.1 km2)
Distribution	85.81% urban 14.19% rural
Population (2023)	778,678
Median household income	$133,593 [1]
Ethnicity	70.8% White 12.2% Hispanic 8.3% Asian 4.8% Black 3.4% Two or more races 0.6% other
Cook PVI	R+1 [2]

New Jersey's 7th congressional district includes all of Hunterdon and Warren Counties; and parts of Morris, Somerset, Sussex, and Union Counties. The district is represented by Republican Thomas Kean Jr., who was first elected in 2022, defeating Democratic incumbent Tom Malinowski.

The district, which has become more ethnically diverse over time, is one of the most affluent congressional districts in the United States, ^[3] with the twelfth-highest median income in the nation. ^[4]

History

In the 2012 general election, Republican incumbent Leonard Lance held his seat against Democratic challenger Upendra J. Chivukula. ^[5] In the 2010 general election, Democratic challenger Ed Potosnak challenged Lance, but Lance defeated Potosnak by a margin of 59% to 41%. For the 2012 election, both Potosnak and former Edison Mayor Jun Choi announced their candidacies for the Democratic nomination. ^{[6] [7]} Choi dropped out of the race in December 2011 after redistricting left his Edison home outside the 7th District. Potosnak dropped out of the race in January 2012 to take a position as executive director of the New Jersey League of Conservation Voters, leaving a momentarily empty field for the Democratic nomination. ^[8]

Effect of 2000 redistricting

New Jersey's 7th district and the 12th district were redistricted after the 2000 census by a bipartisan panel. By consensus of the panel, the Democratic and Republican parties agreed to trade areas in the two districts to make them safer for their respective incumbents. It is likely that this tradeoff, which made New Jersey's 7th less competitive for Democrats, had an effect on the outcome of 2006 election, which was decided by approximately 3,000 votes. Areas of the former 7th district such as Franklin Township that had historically voted reliably Democratic were moved into the adjacent 12th district in order to shore up Democratic incumbent Rush Holt, while reliably Republican Millburn was removed from the 7th, and instead split between the 10th and 11th districts. Additionally, heavily Democratic Plainfield was moved from the 7th to the already Democratic-leaning 6th district. Despite the redistricting, NJ-07 was still the most competitive House district in New Jersey, and was the only one considered to be in play in 2006 by political pundits.

In 2008, Mike Ferguson (who had first been elected in 2000, replacing Bob Franks) did not seek another term. Linda Stender won the Democratic nomination unopposed, while Republican primary voters chose State Senator Leonard Lance in a field of eight candidates. In the general election, Lance defeated Assemblywoman Linda Stender by a margin of 25,833 votes. ^[9]

2018 election

In the Democratic primary Malinowski prevailed with 26,059 votes and 66.8% of the vote. Jacob finished second with 7,467 votes and 19.1% of the vote. ^[10]

Lance won the Republican primary with 74.9%, and 24,856 votes. ^{[10] [11]}

In the 2018 election, Tom Malinowski, ^[12] former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, was considered the front runner among the Democrats challenging Republican incumbent Leonard Lance. ^{[13] [14]} Malinowski was endorsed by Westfield teacher/attorney Lisa Mandelblatt and attorney Scott Salmon when they withdrew from the race in February 2018. ^{[15] [16]} Other candidates in the Democratic primary included lawyer Goutam Jois; ^[17] and social worker Peter Jacob, who was defeated by Lance in the 2016 election. Green Party of New Jersey member Diane Moxley also announced her intent to run for the seat. ^[18] Lindsay Brown, a product manager at the New York Post and a self-described progressive, ran in the Republican primary against Lance. ^[19] Berkeley Heights banking executive Linda Weber ^[20] and environmental advocate David Pringle ^[21] withdrew in March 2018.

During the fourth quarter of 2017, the Malinowski campaign raised $528,000 while the incumbent Lance raised $237,000. Jois raised $189,000 and Jacob raised $29,000. ^{[14] [22]}

Malinowski won the seat in the election with 51.7% of the votes.

2020 election

Incumbent Tom Malinowski (D) ran in the Democratic party primary uncontested, winning 100% (80,334) of the vote. Challenger Thomas Kean Jr. (R) defeated Raafat Barsoom and Tom Phillips in the Republican party primary receiving 79.4% (45,395) of the vote. ^[23]

Incumbent Tom Malinowski (D) defeated challenger Thomas Kean Jr. (R) in the general election by 1.2 percentage points for New Jersey's 7th Congressional District on November 3, 2020. The race was expected to be competitive, with New Jersey's 7th being one of 40 seats gained by Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections.

2022 redistricting and election

The New Jersey Congressional Redistricting Commission altered the boundaries of the district effective January 6, 2022. Although the district remains competitive, the district is more Republican than it was previously.

Incumbent Tom Malinowski (D) faced 2020 challenger Thomas Kean Jr. once again in 2022. In the general election held on November 8, 2022, Kean prevailed, unseating Malinowski. ^[24] It was one of 18 districts that would have voted for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election had they existed in their current configuration while being won or held by a Republican in 2022.

Composition

For the 118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2020 census), the district contains all or portions of six counties and 93 municipalities. ^[25]

Hunterdon County (24):

All 24 municipalities

Morris County (12):

Chester Borough, Chester Township, Long Hill Township, Mendham Borough, Mendham Township (part; also 11th; includes Brookside), Mine Hill Township, Mount Arlington, Mount Olive Township, Netcong, Roxbury, Washington Township, Wharton

Somerset County (13):

Bedminster, Bernards Township, Bernardsville, Branchburg, Bridgewater Township (part; also 12th; includes Bradley Gardens, Bridgewater Center, Green Knoll, Martinsville, and part of Finderne), Far Hills, Green Brook Township, Hillsborough Township (part; also 12th; includes Neshanic and part of Belle Mead and Flagtown), Peapack-Gladstone, Raritan, Somerville, Warren Township, Watchung

Sussex County (10):

Andover Borough, Byram, Fredon, Green Township, Hopatcong, Ogdensburg, Sparta, Stanhope, Stillwater, Walpack

Union County (12):

Berkeley Heights, Clark, Fanwood, Linden (part; also 10th), Mountainside, New Providence, Rahway, Scotch Plains, Springfield, Summit, Westfield, Winfield Township

Warren County (22):

All 22 municipalities

Recent statewide election results

Results under current lines (since 2023)

Year	Office	Result
2016	President	Trump 50.8% – 45.2%
2017	Governor	Guadagno 54.3% – 43.3%
2018	Senator	Hugin 53.2% – 43.4%
2020	President	Biden 51.0% – 47.4%
2020	Senator	Booker 49.2% – 49.0%
2021	Governor	Ciattarelli 55.8% – 43.4%

Results under old lines

Year	Office	Results
2000	President	Gore 54 – 43%
2004	President	Bush 53 – 47%
2008	President	Obama 51 – 48%
2012	President	Romney 52.5 – 46.3%
2016	President	Clinton 48.6 – 47.5%
2017	Governor	Guadagno 52.2% – 45.5%
2020	President	Biden 54.2 – 44.3%
2020	Senate	Booker 52.1% – 46.3%
2021	Governor	Ciattarelli 52.7% – 46.5%

Recent election results

2004 New Jersey 7th District general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Mike Ferguson (incumbent)	162,597	56.9%	−1.1
	Democratic	Steve Brozak	119,081	41.7%	+.8
	Independent	Thomas Abrams	2,153	.8%	N/A
	Independent	Matthew Williams	2,046	.7%	N/A
Majority			43,516	15.2%
Turnout			285,877
	Republican hold		Swing	+1.0%

2006 New Jersey 7th District general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Mike Ferguson (incumbent)	98,399	49.4%	−7.5
	Democratic	Linda Stender	95,454	48.0%	+6.3
	Independent	Thomas Abrams	3,176	1.6%	+.8%
	Libertarian	Darren Young	2,046	1.0%	N/A
Majority			2,945	1.5%	−13.7
Turnout			199,075
	Republican hold		Swing	+6.9%

2008 New Jersey 7th District general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance	142,092	50.8%	+1.4
	Democratic	Linda Stender	116,255	41.6%	−6.4
	Independent	Michael Hsing	15,826	5.7%	N/A
	Independent	Dean Greco	3,008	1.1%	N/A
	Independent	Thomas Abrams	2,408	.9%	−0.7
Majority			25,837	9.2%	+7.7
Turnout			279,589
	Republican hold		Swing	−3.9%

2010 New Jersey 7th District general election ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	104,642	59.4%
	Democratic	Ed Potosnak	71,486	40.6%
Majority			33,156	18.9%
Turnout			176,128
	Republican hold		Swing

2012 New Jersey 7th District general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	175,662	57.2%
	Democratic	Upendra Chivukula	123,057	40.0%
	Independent	Dennis Breen	4,518	1.5%
	Libertarian	Patrick McKnight	4,078	1.3%
Majority			52,605	17.1%
Turnout			307,315
	Republican hold		Swing

2014 New Jersey 7th District general election ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	104,287	59.25%
	Democratic	Janice Kovach	68,232	38.77%
	Libertarian	Jim Gawron	3,478	1.98%
Majority			36,055	20.5%
Turnout			175,997
	Republican hold		Swing

2016 New Jersey 7th District general election ^{[28] [29]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	185,850	54.08%
	Democratic	Peter Jacob	148,188	43.12%
	Libertarian	Dan O'Neill	5,343	1.56%
	Conservative	Arthur T. Haussmann, Jr.	4,254	1.24%
Majority			37,662	10.96%
Turnout			343,635
	Republican hold		Swing

2018 New Jersey 7th District general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tom Malinowski	166,985	51.7
	Republican	Leonard Lance (incumbent)	150,785	46.7
	Green	Diane Moxley	2,676	0.8
	Independent	Gregg Mele	2,296	0.7
Total votes			322,742	100.0
	Democratic gain from Republican

2020 New Jersey 7th District general election ^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tom Malinowski (incumbent)	219,688	50.6
	Republican	Tom Kean Jr.	214,359	49.4
Total votes			434,047	100.0
	Democratic hold

2022 New Jersey 7th District general election ^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Tom Kean Jr.	159,392	51.4
	Democratic	Tom Malinowski (incumbent)	150,701	48.6
Total votes			310,093	100.0
	Republican gain from Democratic

2024 New Jersey's 7th congressional district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Thomas Kean Jr. (incumbent)
	Democratic	Sue Altman
	Libertarian	Lana Leguia
	Green	Andrew Black
Total votes

List of members representing the district

Member (Residence)	Party	Years	Cong ress	Electoral history	Counties/towns
District established March 4, 1873
Isaac W. Scudder (Jersey City)	Republican	March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875	43rd	Elected in 1872. Retired.	1873–1893: Hudson County
Augustus Albert Hardenbergh (Jersey City)	Democratic	March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1879	44th 45th	Elected in 1874. Re-elected in 1876. Retired.
Lewis A. Brigham (Jersey City)	Republican	March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1881	46th	Elected in 1878. Lost re-election.
Augustus Albert Hardenbergh (Jersey City)	Democratic	March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1883	47th	Elected in 1880. Retired.
William McAdoo (Jersey City)	Democratic	March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1891	48th 49th 50th 51st	Elected in 1882. Re-elected in 1884. Re-elected in 1886. Re-elected in 1888. Lost renomination.
Edward F. McDonald (Harrison)	Democratic	March 4, 1891 – November 5, 1892	52nd	Elected in 1890. Died.
Vacant		November 5, 1892 – March 3, 1893
George Bragg Fielder (Jersey City)	Democratic	March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1895	53rd	Elected in 1892. Retired.	1893–1895: Harrison, Hoboken, Jersey City, and Kearney (including present-day East Newark)
Thomas McEwan Jr. (Jersey City)	Republican	March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1899	54th 55th	Elected in 1894. Re-elected in 1896. Retired.	1895–1903: Hudson County (except Bayonne)
William Davis Daly (Hoboken)	Democratic	March 4, 1899 – July 31, 1900	56th	Elected in 1898. Died.
Vacant		July 31, 1900 – December 3, 1900
Allan Langdon McDermott (Jersey City)	Democratic	December 3, 1900 – March 3, 1903	56th 57th	Elected to finish Daly's term. Also elected to the next full term. Redistricted to the 10th district .
Richard W. Parker (Newark)	Republican	March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1911	58th 59th 60th 61st	Redistricted from the 6th district and re-elected in 1902. Re-elected in 1904. Re-elected in 1906. Re-elected in 1908. Lost re-election.	1903–1913: Northern Essex County (excluding Irvington, Maplewood, Millburn, South Orange, and parts of Newark)
Edward W. Townsend (Montclair)	Democratic	March 4, 1911 – March 3, 1913	62nd	Elected in 1910. Redistricted to the 10th district .
Robert G. Bremner (Passaic)	Democratic	March 4, 1913 – February 5, 1914	63rd	Elected in 1912. Died.	1913–1933: Southern Passaic County (Clifton, Haledon, Hawthorne, Little Falls, North Haledon, Passaic, Paterson, Prospect Park, Totowa, Wayne, and West Paterson)
Vacant		February 5, 1914 – April 7, 1914
Dow H. Drukker (Passaic)	Republican	April 7, 1914 – March 3, 1919	63rd 64th 65th	Elected to finish Bremner's term. Re-elected later in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Retired.
Amos H. Radcliffe (Paterson)	Republican	March 4, 1919 – March 3, 1923	66th 67th	Elected in 1918. Re-elected in 1920. Lost renomination.
George N. Seger (Passaic)	Republican	March 4, 1923 – March 3, 1933	68th 69th 70th 71st 72nd	Elected in 1922. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1926. Re-elected in 1928. Re-elected in 1930. Redistricted to the 8th district .
Randolph Perkins (Woodcliff Lake)	Republican	March 4, 1933 – May 25, 1936	73rd 74th	Redistricted from the 6th district and re-elected in 1932. Re-elected in 1934. Died.	1933–1967: Huntderon, Sussex, Warren, parts of Bergen and northern Passaic (Ringwood and West Miford)
Vacant		May 25, 1936 – January 3, 1937	74th
J. Parnell Thomas (Allendale)	Republican	January 3, 1937 – January 2, 1950	74th 75th 76th 77th 78th 79th 80th 81st	Elected in 1936 Re-elected in 1938. Re-elected in 1940. Re-elected in 1942. Re-elected in 1944. Re-elected in 1946. Re-elected in 1948. Resigned upon being convicted of fraud.
Vacant		January 2, 1950 – February 6, 1950	81st
William B. Widnall (Saddle River)	Republican	February 6, 1950 – December 31, 1974	81st 82nd 83rd 84th 85th 86th 87th 88th 89th 90th 91st 92nd 93rd	Elected to finish Thomas's term. Re-elected in 1950. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1958. Re-elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Re-elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1970. Re-elected in 1972. Lost re-election and resigned early.
					1967–1983: Western Bergen County
Andrew Maguire (Ridgewood)	Democratic	January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1981	94th 95th 96th	Elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Lost re-election.
Marge Roukema (Ridgewood)	Republican	January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1983	97th	Elected in 1980. Redistricted to the 5th district .
Matthew John Rinaldo (Union Township)	Republican	January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1993	98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd	Redistricted from the 12th district and Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1990. Retired.	1983–1985: Parts of Mercer (Princeton and Princeton Borough), Middlesex (Cranbury, Jamesburg, Monroe, North Brunswick, South Brunswick), Monmouth (Freehold, Freehold Borough, Marlboro, and Millstone), eastern Somerset, and Union
					1985–1993: Parts of Essex (Millburn), Middlesex (Dunellen and Middlesex Borough), Somerset, and Union
Bob Franks (New Providence)	Republican	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2001	103rd 104th 105th 106th	Elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Re-elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Retired to run for U.S. senator.	1993–2003: Parts of Essex, Middlesex, Somerset, and Union
Mike Ferguson (Warren Township)	Republican	January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2009	107th 108th 109th 110th	Elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Re-elected in 2006. Retired.
					2003–2013: Parts of Hunterdon, Middlesex, Somerset, and Union
Leonard Lance (Clinton Township)	Republican	January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2019	111th 112th 113th 114th 115th	Elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Lost re-election.
					2013–2023: Hunterdon and parts of Essex (Millburn), Morris, Somerset, Union and Warren
Tom Malinowski ( Rocky Hill ) [32] [30]	Democratic	January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2023	116th 117th	Elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Lost re-election.
Thomas Kean Jr. (Westfield)	Republican	January 3, 2023 – present	118th	Elected in 2022. Re-elected in 2024.	2023–present: Warren, Hunterdon, and parts of Morris, Somerset, Sussex, Union

References

1. Center for New Media & Promotion (CNMP), US Census Bureau. "My Congressional District". www.census.gov. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
2. "2022 Cook PVI: District Map and List".
3. "After the Midterms, One Party Controls All the Wealthiest Congressional Districts". finance.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
4. Kaptur, Marcy (October 15, 2021). "U.S. Median Household Income Per Congressional District for 117th Congress" (PDF). Congress.gov. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
5. Salvador Rizzo, The Star-Ledger. "N.J. 7th Congressional District winner: Leonard Lance". NJ.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
6. "Potosnak files 2012 bid for US Congress in NJ's 7th Congressional District". Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
7. Max Pizarro (May 5, 2011). "Choi announces 7th District Congressional candidacy | Observer". Politickernj.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
8. Max Pizarro (January 16, 2012). "Potosnak ends CD 7 run to take job as ED of League of Conservation Voters | Observer". Politickernj.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
9. "Local and National Election Results - Election Center 2008 - Elections & Politics from CNN.com". CNN. Archived from the original on November 7, 2008. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
10. New York Times, Primary results, accessed, June 6, 2018 Archived June 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
11. Almukhtar, Sarah. "New Jersey Primary Election Results". The New York Times . Archived from the original on June 7, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
12. The Hill, Ben Kamisar, October 2, 2017, Obama State Department official to run for House in NJ, Retrieved October 2, 2017
13. "CD7 Flashpoint: Malinowski Beats Weber in Union". Insider NJ. March 11, 2018. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
14. Ballotpedia, New Jersey's 7th Congressional District election, 2018 Archived December 29, 2020, at the Wayback Machine , Retrieved May 7, 2018
15. Salant, Jonathan D. (February 8, 2018). "Democrat drops run against Republican Leonard Lance". nj. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
16. "Democrats are now lining up behind this candidate to take on Republican Leonard Lance". NJ.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
17. "Goutam Jois for Congress NJ-07". Archived from the original on March 17, 2018.
18. Moxley For US Archived December 29, 2020, at the Wayback Machine (website)
19. ABC News, March 29, 2018, House races offer Democrats best shot at claiming a chamber in Congress Archived December 29, 2020, at the Wayback Machine , Retrieved May 17, 2018
20. Jonathan D. Salant, May 14, 2017, NJ.com, Meet the newest challenger to N.J.'s Leonard Lance, Retrieved May 14, 2017
21. "Pringle Exits the CD7 Contest - Insider NJ". March 26, 2018. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
22. Politico "House Q4 FEC Reports," Archived December 29, 2020, at the Wayback Machine , Retrieved May 7, 2018
23. "New Jersey's 7th Congressional District election, 2020". Ballotpedia. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
24. "Kean unseats Malinowski in 7th congressional district". November 9, 2022.
25. , New Jersey Redistricting Commission, December 23, 2021. Accessed November 5, 2022.
26. "Candidates for House of Representatives" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State. Division of Elections. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
27. "Official results" (PDF). www.state.nj.us. 2014.
28. "Candidates for House of Representatives" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State. Division of Elections. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
29. "New Jersey's 7th Congressional District election, 2016". Ballotpedia. Archived from the original on December 29, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
30. "Official List, Candidates for House of Representatives For GENERAL ELECTION 11/03/2020 Election" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Elections. October 14, 2021. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
31. "2022 Official General Election Results: U.S. House of Representatives" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State - Division of Elections. Retrieved December 7, 2022.
32. Tom Malinowski, Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Accessed October 9, 2022. "Hometown: Rocky Hill"

Bibliography

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

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