Among Dems looking to challenge Kean, just one looks to back Jeffries for speaker

In New Jersey’s 7th congressional district, where four Democrats are vying for a chance to take on Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield) in one of the country’s premier congressional races, only one is willing to say they’d back House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries for speaker. 

The question came toward the tail end of the debate, during a hand-raising section. When asked if they were committed to voting for Jeffries for speaker if Democrats won a majority, only Tina Shah, an ICU physician, raised her hand. The others — former Navy helicopter pilot Rebecca Bennett, businessman Brian Varela, and former Small Business Administration official Michael Roth — stayed still.

But even Shah’s support appeared conditional: “If [Jeffries] delivers [a majority], then I would be willing for him to be my speaker,” she said.

The pattern matches other dynamics throughout the state.

Democrats looking to succeed retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing) in New Jersey’s 12th congressional district were similarly wary. Nine candidates in the 12th met on the debate stage, and none affirmatively stepped forward to say they would support Jeffries; Somerset County Commissioner Shanel Robinson said she would not back Jeffries.

“Republicans have been captured, but Democrats have lost their way, and that means there’s a necessity for new leadership,” Princeton professor Sam Wang said during the debate. “If you’ve been watching the last couple of years, millions of people have turned out [due to] unhappiness with where things are going. And what that means is that outsiders need to come in and take over and bring the Democratic Party back to where it should be. And that means voting for new leadership.”

And Rep. Analilia Mejia (D-Glen Ridge), the newest member of the House, has remained noncommittal over whether she would support Jeffries in a future leadership vote.

Many have accused Jeffries of lacking a clear vision under President Donald Trump, and his net approval rating among Democrats is just +3, according to a YouGov poll in January.

VoteVets, a PAC that’s endorsed Bennett and has ties with Jeffries, has spent hundreds of thousands backing Bennett’s campaign.