Early voting turnout in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District has swamped 2024 totals ahead of next week’s midterm election, giving Democrats a key advantage in their attempt to take the seat back from Republicans. And unlike previous years, high Democratic turnout over Republicans has been sustained throughout the early voting period.
In the last general election, Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. was slightly behind Democratic challenger Sue Altman in the early vote by about 4,000 ballots heading into Election Day based on the number of votes cast by registered Democrats. He easily overcame that deficit and cruised to a 5-point victory.
This year, Kean and the Republicans find themselves in a far bigger hole after five days of early in-person voting in the state’s most competitive congressional race. Kean is facing off against first-time Democratic candidate Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot and healthcare executive.
As of Thursday, nearly 54,000 Democrats have voted in the district compared to about 28,000 Republicans, according to early voting data from the state’s Division of Elections. The preliminary totals include vote-by-mail ballots. The high turnout has given Democrats a more than 25,000 vote advantage in the district so far.
“Rebecca is taking nothing for granted and will be out across the district earning every last vote,” Bennett campaign spokesperson Carly Jones said. Kean’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Early totals do not reflect whom voters cast their ballots for, but are instead a tally of which party they are registered with, hinting at which candidate they may support.
The Democratic swell builds on New Jersey’s 2025 gubernatorial race between Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli. Democrats outvoted Republicans in the district by about 10,000 votes after a handful of in-person early voting days. Gov. Sherrill went on to carry the district by about 2 points.
“The early voting [turnout] is something I’ve never seen before in my life,” said state Sen. Jon Bramnick, a Republican from Westfield. “ Republicans better duck for cover.”
Statewide, Democrats are outvoting Republicans early by more than 323,000 votes.
Bramnick said Kean’s anemic numbers reflect an “anti-Trump” sentiment that has swept through New Jersey. A Fairleigh Dickinson University poll this week found the president’s job approval rating now stands at just 29% in the Garden State. The poll also found that just 10% of voters support Trump’s MAGA movement.
“I like Tom, but this race is about the Republican brand,” Bramnick said. “Unfortunately, the Republican brand is Trump, Trump and Trump. And until we change the brand in places like New Jersey, we’re going to continue to lose race after race after race in any type of competitive district.”
