The New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) has added three additional New Jersey Democrats to its list of endorsements in the 2024 cycle: tech entrepreneur Joe Salerno, Assemblyman Herb Conaway (D-Delran), and Newark Council President LaMonica McIver, the Democratic nominees in the 2nd, 3rd, and 10th congressional districts, respectively.
The NJEA, New Jersey’s largest teachers’ union and one of its most powerful unions of any kind, had previously endorsed every congressional Democrat running for re-election, as well as Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) for the U.S. Senate and Sue Altman for the 7th district.
“We are thrilled to join our fellow NJEA members in supporting these three terrific candidates,” the NJEA’s leadership team said in a joint statement. “With Congress so closely divided, every seat matters. We are excited to help elect three more United States Representatives who will stand with students, who will listen to educators and who will put the needs of New Jersey’s working families first.”
The three candidates endorsed today are all in very different spots in their races: Salerno is fighting an uphill battle to unseat Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis), Conaway is vying to hold the Democratic-leaning seat left open by Kim, and McIver is running in a special election this Wednesday to replace the late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark) in his safely Democratic district. All three had to get through competitive primaries to make it to the general election – primaries into which the NJEA decided not to wade.
There are now just two congressional races left in the state where NJEA has not yet issued an endorsement. The group’s endorsement is “pending” in the 9th district, where Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-Paterson), an NJEA endorsee, recently died and was replaced on the ballot by State Sen. Nellie Pou (D-North Haledon); no endorsement has been made in the 4th district, where Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester) is safe for re-election against Democrat Matt Jenkins.