NJ-7 Democrats wrap up primary with eyes on Kean

Two Democrats looking to challenge Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield) descended on Rahway on Sunday as primary day in the 7th congressional district approaches. 

Rebecca Bennett and Michael Roth each launched a canvassing session with about 10 volunteers and supporters on Sunday, each criticizing Kean and arguing that they are the best Democratic option to take him on.

In front of Rahway City Hall, Bennett said Kean hasn’t shown up for the district, but that if she is part of a Democratic majority, she can spark needed change.

“We have actual problems that we need to solve in this country,” she said.
”And so we are going to make sure we tackle our childcare crisis. We are going to make sure people have access to healthcare. We are gonna get ICE off of our streets. And we are going to make sure that we have clean air and clean water for our kids in the next generation.”

Bennett again disavowed a super PAC with apparent GOP ties that has recently attacked Bennett from the left. Bennett, whose campaign issued a cease-and-desist to the PAC last week, said the spending is evidence of her strength. She told the New Jersey Globe that she thinks voters aren’t accepting the attack ads at face value.

“It’s spent over $650,000 in attack ads against me because they know that I am our best shot at being able to flip this seat and kick Tom Kean Jr.’s ass in November,” she said. “But here’s the thing: they picked a fight with the wrong person and the wrong district, and they do not get to put their thumb on the scale in this primary.”

At the home of Indivisible Rahway organizer Lisa Vandever, Roth said Kean’s constituent services have fallen short. He also condemned President Donald Trump and the federal government’s handling of detainees inside Newark’s Delaney Hall, which he said haven’t received basic dignity.

“Today, we find ourselves in a crisis,” he said. “We’re in a moral crisis, an economic crisis, and it’s all in the making of Donald Trump, and it is time that we fight back.”

He said his campaign knocked on more than 2,000 doors on Saturday and was aiming for a larger figure on Sunday.

“My ask to each and every one of you as we knock on the doors is to just focus on the single person that’s in front of you,” Roth said. “Don’t worry about the numbers; worry about the human being that is in front of you. We’re going there to listen to understand what they’re going through, and that is how we are going to win this campaign.”

The two other Democrats seeking the NJ-7 nomination, Brian Varela and Tina Shah, also joined events for the final weekend of primary season.

Shah and Varela attended a Holi event in Basking Ridge on Sunday, and Varela held a meet-and-greet on Friday evening and visited Sparta Day on Saturday. Varela also posted videos from the scene of Delaney Hall.

But the Rahway visits from Bennett and Roth carried additional intrigue: they were joined by opponents running in a contested city council primary. Bennett’s visit with Rahway Mayor Raymond Giacobbe, who faces no challenger in his primary, also featured Rahway Councilmen Jeffrey Brooks and Jeremy Mojica. Brooks and Mojica, along with incumbent Joanna Miles, are seeking renomination.

But they face an outside challenger named Andrew Garcia Phillips, a former journalist who joined Roth on Sunday. Garcia Phillips has accused the council incumbents of not giving serious issues the necessary debate and scrutiny, including disputes over library funding and the city’s water utility.

The campaign has proven contentious at times, including during a Rahway NAACP candidate forum that occasionally grew rowdy.

Speaking after Bennett on Sunday, Mojica said his slate is prepared to work with other top Democrats in the state if elected. Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Senator Cory Booker also endorsed the Rahway slate of Giacobbe, Brooks, Mojica, and Miles. Bennett also has the backing of the Union County Democratic Committee and a large portion of Union County’s top Democrats.

“It’s about synergy,” Mojica said. “It’s about synergy between the council, the mayor, and, hopefully, God willing, our future CD-7 congresswoman, Rebecca Bennett.”

Roth said he and Garcia Phillips share similar goals, including “not reporting to anybody other than the people and the constituents who we represent.” Garcia Phillips, who introduced Roth at Sunday’s event, said similarly.

“I was glad to meet Michael, who has a lot of the same values that I do, a lot of the core democratic values. … Sometimes, our party is part of the problem, and we have to explain that to people who sometimes just go and rubber-stamp the ballot,” Garcia Phillips said.