David Richter (R) will drop his GOP primary challenge to Democrat-turned-Republican Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) and instead seek to run against Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ), the New Jersey Globe reports.
Said Richter: “When I decided to run for Congress, it was to flip a congressional seat. That’s already happened. I’m endorsing Jeff Van Drew.”
Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ) is going “positive” — a sign that that the moderate and independent voters of suburban New Jersey might need some tending if MacArthur is going to keep his Washington job, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
“Never mind that MacArthur and his allies have been pounding Kim, a Rhodes scholar who served as a national security officer under President Barack Obama, with negative ads for months: tax cheat, liar, carpetbagger, ‘Real Fishy,’ Nancy Pelosi liberal.”
A new Monmouth poll in eight competitive congressional districts — CA-48, PA-1, PA-17, NJ-3, NJ-11, OH-12, VA-10 and WV-3 — finds support is evenly divided between the Democratic and the Republican candidates for Congress, 43% to 42%.
The Democratic advantage increases slightly among likely voters, 47% to 43%.
Key takeaway: Republicans routinely won these eight districts by double digit margins in recent election cycles.
Said pollster Patrick Murray: “These findings do not predict that Democrats are going to sweep these eight House contests. But they do indicate that the Republican candidate in each of these districts is facing an unprecedented challenge to hold that seat.”
Join for as low as $6 per month. Learn more.
Already a member? Sign in here.
A new Monmouth poll in New Jersey’s 3rd congressional district finds Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ) barely leading challenger Andy Kim (D), 41% to 40%, among all potential voters – that is voters who have participated in an election since 2010 or have newly registered to vote.
“When applying two different likely voter models, the contest shifts in the Democrat’s favor although it remains basically tied. A historical midterm model gives Kim 45% support and MacArthur 44%, while a model that includes a turnout surge in Democratic precincts gives Kim a slight 46% to 43% lead. These gaps are within the margin of error for these samples.”
The Cook Political Report has the district as Lean Republican.
☑️ Have you have ever wondered if or how the United States might break up? Now available as an audio book: A More Perfect Union: Reimagining The United States as a European Union-style Federation.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.