This is one of those alternate universe stories about what might have been, had the things went a little differently in Trenton. In a redistricting deal made by the leaders of the New Jersey Legislature in 1966, one of three Essex County congressional seats was eliminated and shifted to South Jersey. That precluded the possibility of Tom Kean, then age 31, going to Congress as part of a freshman class
The last time New Jersey’s 11th district flipped parties was in 1984, when Assembly Minority Leader Dean Gallo (R-Parsippany) unseated eleven-term Democratic Rep. Joseph Minish (D-West Orange) by 27,624, 56%-44%. 34 years later, Democrat Mikie Sherrill flipped it back by a slightly higher percentage, 57%-42%. While Gallo won in a presidential election year by 27,624 votes, Sherrill’s mid-term plurality was 47,362, according to final 2018 election results released by the
78% of NJ congressmen who lost had Longworth offices in first term
The Prince Charles of New Jersey faces tough re-election, possible Kean race vs. Malinowski
How a House race creates a dilemma for the Bucco & Bucco
GOP has held Frelinghuysen seat since 1984
The political career of Livingston’s Paul J. Krebs
The most frustrating thing for Rep. Rodney Proctor Frelinghuysen has got to be that he’s reached the zenith of his political career, only to face the inconvenience of an election. He’s being tagged as out of touch; that’s something incumbents often overcome. His greatest challenge is a complete unfamiliarity with campaigning against Democrats in competitive general elections. For Frelinghuysen, this is his family business. It’s a long, long story --
