New Jersey’s congressional delegation has $43 million in the bank

New Jersey’s 14 members of Congress collectively have $43.2 million in their campaign accounts after raising a total of $7.7 million in the second quarter of 2023, though the variation among candidates is vast. Here’s where candidate fundraising stands in each congressional district and for the state’s two Senate seats.

1st district: After spending $3.5 million and depleting his warchest to achieve a dominant victory last year, Rep. Donald Norcross (D-Camden) raised a substantial $426,000 during Q2 of 2023.

Norcross now has $1 million on-hand for what’s likely to be an entirely uncompetitive 2024 election in his Camden-based district. His one declared Republican opponent, unsuccessful 2022 candidate Damon Galdo, has a warchest of just $215.

2nd district: Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis), who three years ago was locked in one of the most competitive congressional races in the country but who is generally considered secure for re-election in 2024, raised $322,000 this quarter. The congressman now has a warchest of $539,000.

One of Van Drew’s Democratic opponents, Joe Salerno, made a splash by immediately giving his own campaign $403,000, making him by far the best-funded congressional challenger in New Jersey at the moment. Tim Alexander, the Democratic nominee against Van Drew last year, raised just $24,000 during the first two months of his rematch bid; two other Democratic candidates, Brandon Saffold and Carolyn Rush, haven’t reported raising anything yet.

3rd district: Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) raised $480,000 in the second quarter, leaving him with $882,000 on-hand after an expensive 2022 cycle.

Last year, just like in 2020 and 2018, Kim faced a self-funding Republican opponent who forced him to raise a massive amount of money. But in a district that has become quite Democratic-leaning, no similar opponent is clearly waiting in the wings this year; Gregory Sobocinski, the one Republican who has filed so far, has just $1,074 on-hand.

4th district: Would-be Dean of the House Chris Smith (R-Manchester) raised $85,000 this quarter and has $262,000 saved up.

That’s plenty enough for Smith to win general elections in the 4th district, which was redrawn to be just about as safely Republican as possible. But after beating back an underfunded primary challenger by a 58%-37% margin in 2022, the relatively moderate Smith will likely want to have a solid warchest on-hand in case another right-wing challenger emerges in future cycles.

5th district: As always, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-Wyckoff) turned in a huge fundraising quarter, raising $1.2 million – more than any other member of the House from New Jersey (and more than most other House members in the country outside of congressional leadership).

Gottheimer now has a $15.1 million warchest that he can spend as he sees fit. His Bergen County-based district is probably safely Democratic at this point, but with the 2025 gubernatorial election on the horizon, Gottheimer could still use some of that money to boost his name recognition and favorability.

6th district: Rep. Frank Pallone (D-Long Branch) raised $361,000 this quarter, giving him a warchest of $2.9 million.

Last cycle, Pallone faced Monmouth County Commissioner Sue Kiley (R-Hazlet), his most qualified Republican opponent in ages. Pallone took the challenge seriously and spent $3.8 million to Kiley’s $400,000, a spending disparity that ultimately helped the congressman achieve a 16-point victory.

7th district: Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield), representing what is probably the state’s last true swing district, raised $860,000 this quarter, keeping up an impressive fundraising streak that dates back to his first congressional campaign in 2020. Kean has a warchest of $1.5 million ahead of what’s certain to be an expensive re-election fight.

Two Democrats have announced campaigns against Kean: former Working Families state director Sue Altman and Roselle Park Mayor Joe Signorello III. Altman is the better-funded of the two so far, raising $218,000 during her first month as a candidate and still has $194,000 left to spend. 

As for Signorello, he only just announced that he would drop his U.S. Senate campaign and switch to the 7th congressional district; his Senate account reported raising $60,000 in Q2 and has $86,000 on-hand, all of which is transferable to his congressional campaign.

8th district: After arriving on the scene in spring 2022 with a huge financial show of force, freshman Rep. Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City)’s fundraising has slowed down quite a bit. The congressman raised $61,000 in the second quarter of 2023 and has $234,000 on-hand.

Menendez’s Hudson County-based district is safely Democratic, so he has no need to worry about a general election fight. There’s always the possibility of a primary challenge, though, in a district that’s home to some of the most progressive voters in the state.

9th district: Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-Paterson) is soon set to become the oldest member of the U.S. House, as long as he can win re-election in a district that’s less overwhelmingly Democratic than it once was. Pascrell has $1.4 million in the bank after raising $138,000 this quarter.

One of Pascrell’s 2024 Republican challengers, Vince Micco, has $16,000 on-hand after raising less than $3,000 this quarter; another candidate, 2020 and 2022 nominee Billy Prempeh, has announced a rematch campaign but hasn’t filed any fundraising reports yet.

10th district: Last year’s Democratic primary in the 10th district showed that, though he may be a lowkey congressman, Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark) can become an impressive fundraiser and electoral powerhouse when he needs to.

But without an obvious primary challenger on the horizon this year, Payne’s fundraising has cooled down again. The congressman raised $72,000 this quarter and has $46,000 on-hand.

11th district: Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) raised $552,000 in the second quarter, bringing her cash-on-hand total to $1.2 million.

Sherrill spent $8.8 million to win re-election last year, more than almost anyone else in the state (she was just barely beaten by Rep. Tom Malinowski, who spent $9 million on his unsuccessful re-election campaign). That spending got her a 19-point win, but it also means she’ll have to spend the coming quarters building her warchest back up to what it once was.

12th district: Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing), who is in no real danger of a serious primary or general election challenge, raised $113,000 in Q2 and has $143,000 on-hand.

Watson Coleman’s 2022 opponent, Darius Mayfield, is running again this cycle; he raised $15,000 in the second quarter and has $6,000 left.

Senate (2024): Though New Jersey’s 2024 Senate election is still somewhat in flux, Senator Bob Menendez is fundraising at a prodigious pace, raising $1.6 million this quarter. The three-term senator, who told the New Jersey Globe back in 2020 that he intends to run for re-election, has $7.8 million on-hand.

Menendez’s most formidable opponent so far is Republican Shirley Maia-Cusick, an immigration consultant and first-time candidate. Maia-Cusick raised $117,000 in the second quarter, much of it self-funded, though her fast burn rate left her with only $23,000 on-hand.

Signorello, the mayor of Roselle Park, had been running against Menendez in the Democratic primary, but he’s now running for the House instead. A number of other candidates from both parties have launched campaigns but haven’t filed any fundraising reports yet. 

Senate (2026): Senator Cory Booker’s seat isn’t up for another three years, but he managed to be one of the state’s best fundraisers anyways.

Booker, who is running for re-election to a third full term, raised $1.4 million in the second quarter and has $10.2 million on-hand. No challengers from either party have announced campaigns or filed fundraising reports so far.