Results from the New Jersey Primaries: Prospects and Challenges for Progressive Candidates
Diversity Declaration tracked two New Jersey House primaries on June 5 that highlight prospects and challenges for progressive candidates in the 2018 midterms:
NJ-2: As the New York Times wrote: “Jeff Van Drew, a state senator, won the Democratic primary. Mr. Van Drew, a conservative Democrat with a pro-gun record who voted against same-sex marriage in 2012, nonetheless won the backing of powerful South Jersey Democrats early on and was able to fend off a challenge from some progressive candidates.”
NJ-3: Andy Kim, an Obama Administration national security official endorsed by former VP Joe Biden, and the founder of www.risestronger.org, secured the Democratic nomination, running unopposed. He now must wage an uphill battle going into November’s general election, against wealthy Republican incumbent Tom MacArthur. NJ-3 has 12,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans, and Cook’s Political Report has shifted its rating of the district to the left this year, though NJ-3 voted for Trump in 2016 after voting twice for Obama. MacArthur has a vast personal fortune to fund his own campaign.
http://observer.com/2018/04/cook-shifts-tom-macarthur-district/