Sarah Schoengood, a small business owner and recent intern in the office of Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing), will run for the 3rd congressional district this year, adding a fourth Democratic candidate to the primary for Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown)’s open seat.
“We must come together to effectively address the challenges facing Americans, especially younger generations, who struggle to buy homes, pay student debt, and pursue financial and civil freedom,” Schoengood said in a statement. “I am ready to champion the values of integrity, good leadership, and public service and to fight for New Jersey.”
The 30-year-old Schoengood, a 3rd district native who currently lives in Monmouth County’s Manalapan Township, is a co-owner of the seafood company Carthage Crabs Seafood. She worked in Watson Coleman’s office last year, and previously held positions at the nonprofit Institute of International Education and in the office of Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-New York).
“Having spent my entire life in New Jersey, I am fueled by an unwavering passion to advocate for the people of New Jersey’s Third,” Schoengood said. “While our district is a wonderful place to live and raise a family, I am also keenly aware of the daily challenges and hardships for homeowners and wage earners, and I will work tirelessly to better the quality of life for my constituents.”
If elected, Schoengood would be the first woman to ever represent the 3rd district or any South Jersey-based congressional district; she would also be the first person born in the 1990s to represent New Jersey in Congress.
But Schoengood faces a difficult path to the Democratic nomination in the district, which covers nearly all of Burlington County and parts of Monmouth and Mercer Counties.
The two Democratic frontrunners for the seat, which is open thanks to Kim’s U.S. Senate campaign, are Assemblyman Herb Conaway (D-Delran) and Assemblywoman Carol Murphy (D-Mount Laurel), two well-known local politicians who have represented half of Burlington County in the legislature for years. Civil rights attorney Joe Cohn added his name to the field last week.
Murphy and Conaway have both received some notable endorsements – and they’re also the only two candidates who will be able to compete for party support in Monmouth County. The filing deadline for the Monmouth Democratic convention has already passed without filings from Cohn or Schoengood, locking them out of the possibility of receiving the organizational line in a county that makes up around 12% of the district’s Democratic primary electorate.
The eventual winner of the Democratic primary will start out the general election as a clear favorite. Kim first got to Congress in 2018 by narrowly unseating a Republican incumbent, but his district was redrawn in advance of the 2022 elections to make it substantially more Democratic, and Kim won a third term that year 55%-44%.
This story was updated at 2:23 p.m. with more information about Schoengood’s business history.