In a first, Trump gives Tom Kean Jr. his ‘complete and total endorsement’

When Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield) campaigns for re-election next year, he’ll be doing so as a Trump-certified candidate – a first for the two-term congressman, and a clear warning shot to any more conservative Republicans who might have thought of taking Kean on.

In a Truth Social post this evening, President Donald Trump said that Kean, who represents one of the most closely divided congressional districts in the country, has his “Complete and Total Endorsement” for a third term in office.

“A Tremendous Advocate of our America First Agenda, Tom is working tirelessly to Secure the Border, Stop Crime, Grow our Economy, Cut Taxes, Champion Small Business, Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Support our Brave Military and Veterans, and Protect and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump wrote.

The endorsement is hardly a personalized item; Trump also fired off seven other similarly worded endorsements, most of them for Republicans in competitive House districts like Kean’s, within the span of a minute.

But Trump’s support should help Kean stave off any hint of a Republican primary challenge. While Kean has largely stuck to the party line in Washington and avoided publicly criticizing Trump, he was a more moderate voice during his decades in the state legislature, and some conservatives in New Jersey have yet to be fully won over.

In the 2022 Republican primary, when Kean was vying to take down Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-Ringoes), the then-state senator received 46% of the vote, with six other Republicans running varying amounts to his right (among them a state assemblyman) splitting the remainder. Kean didn’t face a serious primary opponent during his first re-election campaign in 2024, though gadfly challenger Roger Bacon got 22% of the vote.

Kean never got an endorsement from Trump in either of those races, however; this is his first time he’ll run with the president’s official seal of approval. In tandem with Trump’s other endorsements of House Republicans in recent days, it appears to be part of a concerted effort by Trump and House GOP leaders to limit costly and divisive primary elections as Republicans try to defend their House majority next year.

(Trump has yet to weigh in on the re-election campaigns of New Jersey’s other two Republicans, both of whom represent far redder districts; Rep. Jeff Van Drew is a close Trump ally and has little to worry about, but long-serving Rep. Chris Smith could be in more danger if pro-Trump forces decide to target him.)

Kean said in a statement that he was grateful for the support from Trump, who narrowly carried Kean’s 7th district last year with the congressman’s endorsement.

“Thank you for your support, President Trump!” Kean said. “I am working every day to build a stronger America and a stronger New Jersey. We are making life more affordable for every family, safeguarding our communities, and working to achieve peace across the world. Thank you for your leadership, Mr. President. I will continue to deliver for a better future.”

But Democrats, too, are likely to revel in closer ties between Trump and Kean. Malinowski and 2024 nominee Sue Altman both tried to connect the two in voters’ minds, and while neither of their campaigns were successful, it’s a strategy that’s likely to be repeated by the growing field of Democrats – already four challengers and counting – who want to defeat Kean in 2026.