Guinchard ends rematch campaign in NJ-5

Just three months after launching her second run for New Jersey’s 5th congressional district, GOP congressional candidate Mary Jo Guinchard is back out of the race, announcing today on social media that she is suspending her campaign.

“Running for office has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life,” Guinchard wrote. “I entered this race because I care deeply about our community and believe we deserve a representative who will fight for our families, our values, and our future. I remain proud of the ideas we put forward and the conversations we’ve started.”

Guinchard’s exit leaves the GOP without any candidates running to take on Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-Tenafly), who is coming off an unsuccessful run for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, in a North Jersey district that only narrowly supported Kamala Harris last year.

A retired singer and actress originally from Texas, Guinchard served as the mayor of a tiny village in New York before moving to Bergen County and beginning a political career there. She ran for county commissioner in both 2022 and 2023, losing in the primary election the first time and in the general election the second time.

Last year, Guinchard decided to aim higher, running against Gottheimer in the Bergen County-based 5th congressional district. But although she easily won a GOP primary against Paramus school board member George Song and seeded her campaign with several hundred thousand dollars from her own pocket, she failed to convince GOP leaders that Gottheimer could be beaten, and she lost 55%-43% as Donald Trump was losing the district just 50%-48% to Harris.

Guinchard launched a rematch campaign in April, arguing that Gottheimer’s then-ongoing gubernatorial campaign meant that he was abandoning the constituents he had been elected to serve. She gave her own campaign another $100,000 donation a few weeks after entering the race – but she didn’t spend much of it, ending the second quarter with nearly $96,000 still in the bank.