Herb Conaway enters race for Andy Kim’s House seat

Herb Conaway,  a 26-year member of the New Jersey State Assembly and the chairman of the Assembly Health Committee, has joined the race for Congress in New Jersey’s 3rd district, where Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) is giving up his seat to run for the U.S. Senate.

Conaway becomes the second Democrat to enter the race; his legislative running mate, Assembly Majority Whip Carol Murphy (D-Mount Laurel), announced her candidacy in October.

As a U.S. Air Force veteran, physician, and lawyer, the 60-year-old Delanco resident is emphasizing his role in expanding access to health care during his legislative career.

“I spent the last twenty-five years working to improve the lives of hard-working families in New Jersey, especially when it comes to critical issues like health care, cost of living, and the education for our children,” Conaway said.

His candidacy sets up convention fights with Murphy and possibly others for organization lines in Burlington – which has about two-thirds of the Democratic primary vote in the 3rd district – Mercer, and Monmouth Counties.  Assemblyman Wayne DeAngelo (D-Hamilton), a pro-life labor leader, and Mercer County Clerk Paula Sollami Covello are also potential candidates.  Senate Majority Whip Troy Singleton (D-Delran) said he would not run for Congress last month.

If he wins the seat, Conaway would become just the third Black person to represent New Jersey in the U.S. House of Representatives and the first from South Jersey.

The son of a teacher and a nurse, Conaway is a graduate of Princeton University and Jefferson Medical College and received his law degree from Rutgers.  He was an Air Force Medical Corps captain and a medical officer at McGuire Air Force Base.  He practiced internal medicine before becoming the full-time director of the Burlington County Health Department after Democrats took control of county government.

Conaway is expected to rely heavily on his career as a physician as he advocates for abortion rights and mental health services: his logo says “Herb Conaway, MD” and has an image of a stethoscope.

“As a physician, there is nothing more important than access to health care, including abortion and mental health services,” said Conaway.  “I am running for Congress to make sure we are protecting our fundamental right to health care so that women have access to lifesaving abortions and so that our children, seniors, and veterans receive the services they need to thrive in our communities.”

He would become the first physician to serve in Congress from New Jersey since Rep. Archibald Olpp (R-Union City) lost his bid for a second term in 1922.

In 1997, Conaway launched his political career at age 34 when he flipped an open Republican Assembly seat in a Burlington County-based district.  He ran 45 votes ahead of his running mate, Jack Connors, who beat Republican Ken Faulkner by 67 votes.  Problems with voting machines led a judge to unseat Connors, who easily won a special election the following year.

Since then, Connors has won a succession of tough re-election campaigns in a district represented until 2017 by a Republican state senator, Diane Allen.  He defeated a series of strong GOP rivals, including Sheriffs Gary Daniels and Jean Stanfield, and former Philadelphia Flyers player Brian Propp; his district is now safe Democratic.

This is Conaway’s second run for Congress.  He challenged ten-term Rep. James Saxton (R-Mount Holly) in 2004 and lost by 88,904 votes, 63%-35%, after raising just $54,485 in a district George W. Bush carried with 51% of the vote.

“Right now, it is clear to me that Washington isn’t working for everyday people.  A Congress thriving on division and chaos is neglecting the real needs of our community,” Conaway stated.  “New Jersey families are certainly doing their fair share.  I am running for Congress to be their voice and deliver on life-enhancing issues.”

Kim flipped the congressional seat in 2018 when he narrowly ousted two-term Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-Toms River) by a 51%-49% margin and then held the seat by eight points in 2020 in a district that Donald Trump carried twice.

Congressional redistricting dropped heavily Republican Ocean County and replaced it with ten towns in western Monmouth, and East Windsor, Hamilton, Hightstown, Lawrence and Robbinsville.  Kim was re-elected with 55.5% of the vote in 2022.

In a statement this morning, Murphy repeated the themes of her campaign.

“In my quest to become the first congresswoman in the history of South Jersey, I knew the road to the United States House of Representatives would be challenging, and today, my state assembly running mate announced his second attempt for this seat,” Murphy said  I will be undaunted in my pursuit because the fight for women’s equality requires a unique perspective desperately needed in Washington, as only seven women have ever served in the New Jersey delegation and no more than two simultaneously. Now more than ever, we have a moral obligation for a process that reflects the principles of equity and inclusion.”

This story was updated at 10:26 AM with comment from Murphy.