Rep. Frank Pallone (D-Long Branch) will go up against Republican Scott Fegler in the 6th congressional district general election after both beat back low-profile primary challengers, the New Jersey Globe projects.
As of 9:48 p.m., Pallone leads climate change activist John Hsu 85%-15% in the Democratic primary; Fegler is beating former Libertarian gubernatorial nominee Gregg Mele 81%-19% in the Republican contest.
Pallone, who has held his seat in Congress since 1988, was in little danger in a Democratic primary even if his detractors had found a stronger candidate to run against him. The longtime congressman remains very politically active in his Monmouth and Middlesex County-based district; in fact, he’s still the Democratic municipal chairman in his home of Long Branch.
Hsu ran for office once before in 2020, when he tried to challenge Pallone but dropped out of the race long before the filing deadline. This time, he made it onto the ballot on a slate with left-wing Senate candidate Larry Hamm, but his campaign didn’t take off beyond that.
As for Fegler, he’s a food importer and a first time candidate whom Middlesex and Monmouth Republicans chose as their preferred nominee at their respective conventions. Mele, who lost both conventions in landslides, chose to forge ahead with his off-the-line campaign anyways despite not living in the district, with predictable results.
The Republican nomination is likely the only thing that Fegler will win this year, however, in the solidly Democratic 6th district. Republicans ran a very serious candidate against Pallone in 2022, Monmouth County Commissioner Sue Kiley (R-Hazlet), and she still lost 58%-41%.
For Pallone, the real contest this year will be whether Democrats are able to take control of the House. If they do, then he’s set to regain the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, one of the most powerful committees in the chamber.