Caucus of center-left Hill Dems endorses Bennett

The New Democrat Action Fund, the political arm of the largest center-left caucus on Capitol Hill, has endorsed Rebecca Bennett in the 7th congressional district.

While the endorsement is not going to move many votes in New Jersey, especially now that the Democratic primary is over, it’s a sign of where a Congresswoman Bennett might fall on the ideological spectrum if she wins. The four-way primary for the 7th district, which Bennett won in a landslide earlier this week, was not fought primarily on ideological lines, but Bennett presented herself as the most moderate and electable option against Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield).

“As a former Navy pilot and healthcare expert, [Bennett is] cool under pressure, has a passion for service, and knows how to tackle the biggest problems facing this country,” the New Democrat Action Fund said in a statement. “We’re excited to stand with her and flip this seat blue.”

House Democrats are broadly divided into three overlapping ideological caucuses: the centrist Blue Dogs, the center-left New Democrats, and the progressive Congressional Progressive Caucus. The caucuses frequently make endorsements of aspiring House candidates, and most newly elected Democrats join at least one of them upon their arrival in Washington, providing an early signal of how they’ll vote on key issues.

In the current New Jersey delegation, only Rep. Josh Gottheimer is a Blue Dog; Reps. Gottheimer, Herb Conaway, Nellie Pou, and Donald Norcross are New Democrats; and Reps. Pou, Norcross, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Frank Pallone, LaMonica McIver, and Analilia Mejia are all CPC members. (Rep. Rob Menendez is not part of any ideological caucus.)

The very progressive Watson Coleman is retiring this year, but she’ll be replaced by someone even further to her left: Adam Hamawy, who won a 12-way Democratic primary for her district earlier this week after being endorsed by the CPC’s PAC.