In the race for congressional candidates in New Jersey’s 7th District, Democratic incumbent Tom Malinowski outraised Republican Tom Keen Jr. by more than $1 million during the third quarter of 2022, giving him about $1.6 million more until October.
Keane, the former minority leader of the New Jersey State Senate, raised a respectable $865,909 through Sept. 30 and has $1,158,534 in cash.
During the same three-month period, Malinowski earned $1.83 million and had $2.78 million in cash.
“Voters in this district are talking about skyrocketing inflation, rising gas prices and a steady rise in crime in our communities,” Keane said. I am grateful to everyone who supported our campaign to address these issues, and in 25 days we will elect a Congress committed to getting the country back on track.”
Since entering the race in the summer of 2021, Keane has raised $3,560,576. Malinowski raised more than $6 million.
But the race also attracted significant outside spending that leveled the playing field.
The Republican-led Congressional Leadership Fund spent $1,740,224 on the race, while the Democratic-aligned House Majority PAC spent $419,306.
The National Republican Congressional Committee spent $329,311 on New Jersey’s 7th District, while the Democratic Congressional Committee spent less than $100.
Service Employees International Union Local 1199 ha spent $120,939 on the race.
The Firefighters’ Support Association PAC spent $28,000 on radio ads to endorse Keane, and the National Association of Realtors’ Political Action Committee spent $18,100 to support him.
The Democratic map approved last December made the 7th District more Republican, though not unwinnable. The new map’s 7th District is Biden +4 compared to Biden +10 currently. Republican Jack Cittarelli won the new 7th seat by thirteen points over Governor Phil Murphy.
The current 7th District, which includes parts of Union, Somerset, Essex, Warren, Morris and all of Hunterdon, was drawn by a Republican congressman. But in the 2018 wave election under President Donald Trump, Malinowski unseated five-term incumbent Leonard Lance (R-Clinton Township).
In 2020, Keane was within one percent of unseating Malinowski in the old district.
