The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, and elected the 12

U.S. representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from the state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, a loss of one seat following the

2010 United States census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...

. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...

and an election to the U.S. Senate.

Overview

Redistricting

Redistricting in New Jersey is the responsibility of the

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington; t ...

, comprising six Democrats and six Republicans. If a majority of the 12 cannot reach an agreement, a neutral 13th person serves as a mediator or tie-breaker. On December 23, 2011, the commission voted 7–6 for a map supported by Republicans.

District 1

In redistricting, Cherry Hill Township was added to the 1st district, while Riverton and parts of East Greenwich Township and Mantua Township were removed from the district. Democrat

Rob Andrews Robert Ernest Andrews (born August 4, 1957) is an American politician who served as a U.S. representative for from 1990 to 2014. The district included most of Camden County and parts of Burlington County and Gloucester County. Early life, ...

, who has represented the 1st district since 1990, ran for re-election.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= *

Francis Tenaglio Francis X. Tenaglio (born January 8, 1949) is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives 159th district from 1977 to 1978. Tenaglio ran unsuccessfully for Governor of New Jersey in 2005 ...

, former

Pennsylvania state Representative The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

and candidate for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

in 2005

=Declined

= *

Donald Norcross Donald W. Norcross (born December 13, 1958) is an American politician and labor leader who is the U.S. representative for in South Jersey. A member of the Democratic Party, Norcross was first elected to this congressional seat in 2014, follow ...

, state senator * Frank Minor, Mayor of Logan Township

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Gregory Horton, athletic director of

Clearview Regional High School Clearview Regional High School is a regional public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Harrison Township and Mantua Township, two communities in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part ...

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 2

In redistricting, Barnegat Light, Bass River Township, Beach Haven, Eagleswood Township, Harvey Cedars, Little Egg Harbor, Long Beach Township, Ship Bottom, Stafford Township, Surf City, Tuckerton, Washington Township and part of Mantua Township were added to the district. Republican

Frank LoBiondo Frank Alo LoBiondo (: born May 12, 1946) is an American businessman and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1995 to 2019. He is a member of the Republican Party. He represented all of Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and ...

, who represented the 2nd district since 1995, sought re-election. David W Bowen Sr., a Businessman, a Real Estate Investor and Public Speaker, ran as an Independent. Cassandra Shober, an office manager, won the Democratic nomination.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * Mike Assad, Absecon Board of Education member

Primary results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Cassandra Shober, office manager

=Eliminated in primary

= * Viola Hughes, former mayor of Fairfield Township and nominee for this seat in 2006 * Gary Stein, candidate for the General Assembly in 2011

=Declined

= * Lou Greenwald, Majority Leader of the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

Jeff Van Drew Jefferson H. Van Drew (born February 23, 1953) is an American politician and dentist serving as the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 2nd congressional district since 2019. Formerly a Democrat, he has been a member of the Republican Party s ...

, state senator *

Jim Whelan Jim Whelan (November 8, 1948 – August 22, 2017) was an American Democratic Party politician, who served in the New Jersey State Senate where he represented the 2nd Legislative District, from January 8, 2008, until his death. Early life Whela ...

, state senator

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Results

District 3

In redistricting, the 3rd district was made more favorable to Republicans. Parts of Burlington County, including Riverton and Shamong Township, and Brick Township and Mantoloking in

Ocean County Ocean County is a county located along the Jersey Shore in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Its county seat is Toms River.Cherry Hill and Bass River were removed. Republican Jon Runyan, who has represented the 3rd district since January 2011, sought re-election. Frederick John LaVergne of

Delanco, New Jersey Delanco Township is a township in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 4,283, reflecting an increase of 1,046 (+32.3%) from the 3,237 counted in the 2000 Census, which ...

, ran as a "Democratic-Republican"

Democratic-Republican Party The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the earl ...

- the party designation of Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and John Quincy Adams. Robert Witterschein, an accountant, ran as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Jon Runyan, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Declined

= * Justin Murphy, former Tabernacle Township Committee Member and candidate for this seat in 2010

Primary results

Democratic primary

Former U.S. Representative

John Adler John Herbert Adler (August 23, 1959April 4, 2011) was an American lawyer, politician and a member of the Democratic Party who served for one term as the U.S. representative for from 2009 until 2011. He lost his 2010 congressional election to ...

, who represented the 3rd district from 2009 until 2011 but lost re-election in 2010, had planned to run again; however, Adler died in April 2011.

Shelley Adler John Herbert Adler (August 23, 1959April 4, 2011) was an American lawyer, politician and a member of the Democratic Party who served for one term as the U.S. representative for from 2009 until 2011. He lost his 2010 congressional election to ...

, an of counsel attorney and the widow of the former congressman, ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Thomas Sacks-Wilner, a medical doctor who was considering a bid for the Democratic nomination, declined to run.

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, attorney and the widow of former U.S. Representative

=Declined

= * Thomas Sacks-Wilner, physician

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Predictions

Results

District 4

In redistricting, the district lost all of its share of Burlington County, while gaining more of Republican-leaning Monmouth. Republican Chris Smith, who has represented the 4th congressional district since 1981, sought re-election.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Chris Smith, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * Terrence McGowan, retired firefighter, police officer, and

Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting s ...

Primary results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Brian Froelich, retired executive and business consultant

=Withdrew

= * Patricia Bennett, attorney * Doug DeMeo

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 5

Republican

Scott Garrett Ernest Scott Garrett (born July 9, 1959) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for , serving from 2003 to 2017. He is a member of the Republican Party. He previously served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1990 to 200 ...

, who has represented the 5th district since 2003, successfully sought re-election. Michael Cino, an oil executive who challenged Garrett in the Republican primary in 2006, will run again. Garret won the Republican primary by a fairly comfortable margin. Jason Castle, an it executive and Marine; Adam Gussen, the deputy mayor of

Teaneck Teaneck () is a township in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a bedroom community in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 39,776, reflecting an increase of 516 (+1.3%) f ...

; and Diane Sare, all ran for the Democratic nomination to challenge Garrett. Gussen eventually won the primary. Patricia Alessandrini ran as a candidate of the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

for the seat. Mark Quick, a former member of the

Warren County Warren County is the name of fourteen counties in the USA. Some are named after General Joseph Warren, who was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolutionary War: * Warren County, Georgia * Warren County, Illinois * Warren County ...

Republican Committee who challenged Garrett as an

in 2010, had stated that he would as a candidate of the

Reform Party of New Jersey The Reform Party of New Jersey, also known as New Jersey Reform Party, was originally founded as the state party organization for New Jersey of the Reform Party of the United States of America. History The Reform Party of New Jersey was independ ...

. He withdrew from the race and did not qualify for the ballot.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * Michael Cino, oil executive and candidate for this seat in 2006 * Bonnie Somer, chorus director and

LaRouche LaRouche may refer to: * Lyndon LaRouche (1922–2019), an American political figure ** The overall LaRouche movement, an international political and cultural movement ** The Worldwide LaRouche Youth Movement, which recruits people between the age ...

political organizer,

Primary results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Adam Gussen, deputy mayor of

=Eliminated in primary

= * Jason Castle, IT executive and Marine * Diane Sare,

LaRouche movement The LaRouche movement is a political and cultural network promoting the late Lyndon LaRouche and his ideas. It has included many organizations and companies around the world, which campaign, gather information and publish books and periodicals ...

activist

=Withdrew

= * Terry Duffy, director of Passaic County

Board of Chosen Freeholders In New Jersey, a Board of County Commissioners (until 2020 named the Board of Chosen Freeholders) is the elected county-wide government board in each of the state's 21 counties. In the five counties that have an elected county executive, the ...

(Withdrew March 12)

=Declined

= *

Harry Carson Harry Donald Carson (born November 26, 1953) is a former American football middle linebacker who played his entire professional career for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). Carson was inducted into the College Football Ha ...

, former New York Giants

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

* Robert M. Gordon, state senator * Leo McGuire, former Bergen County Sheriff * Jim McQueeny,

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

executive and former News12

anchor An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek ἄ� ...

Steve Rothman Steven Richard Rothman (born October 14, 1952) is an American former jurist and politician who served as the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 9th congressional district, serving for 16 years from January 3, 1997, to January 3, 2013. Rothman w ...

, incumbent U.S. Representative for the 9th district (running in the 9th district) * Connie Wagner, Member of the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presb ...

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Results

District 6

Democrat

Frank Pallone Frank Joseph Pallone Jr. (; born October 30, 1951) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 1988. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district, numbered as the 3rd district from 1988 to ...

, who has represented the 6th district since 1993 (and previously represented the 3rd district from 1988 until 1993), will seek re-election. Anna Little, the former mayor of

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

, who unsuccessfully challenged Pallone as the Republican nominee in 2010, won the Republican nomination to challenge Pallone.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Anna Little, former mayor of

and nominee for this seat in 2010

=Eliminated in primary

= * Ernesto Cullari, small-business owner and orthopedic practitioner

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 7

Republican

Leonard Lance Leonard John Lance (born June 25, 1952) is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative for , from 2009 to 2019. He ran for re-election in 2018, but was defeated by Democrat Tom Malinowski. He is a member of the ...

, who has represented the 7th district since 2009, ran for re-election. The 7th district was made more favorable to Republicans in redistricting, losing all of Democratic leaning Middlesex County, while now including all of heavily Republican Hunterdon. State Assemblyman Upendra J. Chivukula ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. At least two other candidates had announced in 2011 that they would seek the Democratic nomination, but withdraw in the months before the filing deadline: Jun Choi, the former mayor of Edison, and Ed Potosnak, a chemistry teacher and

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

who unsuccessfully ran for the seat in 2010. Following the redistricting process which placed Choi's town of Edison in the 6th district, Choi announced that he would not be a candidate for Congress in 2012 and endorsed incumbent Frank Pallone. On January 16, 2012, Potosnak announced that he was dropping out of the race to accept a position as executive director of the New Jersey League of Conservation Voters. Patrick McKnight ran as the Libertarian candidate.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * David Larsen, businessman and candidate for this seat in 2010

Primary results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Upendra J. Chivukula, Member of the

=Withdrew

= * Jun Choi, former mayor of Edison (Withdrew December 2011) * Ed Potosnak, chemistry teacher

and candidate for this seat in 2010 (Withdrew January 16)

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Results

District 8

The new 8th district is the successor to the 13th district. Democrat

Albio Sires Albio B. Sires (; born January 26, 1951) is a Cuban-born American businessman and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for since 2006. The district, numbered as the from 2006 to 2013, includes most of northern and eastern Jers ...

, who has represented the 13th district since 2006, will seek re-election in this district.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative for the 13th District

=Eliminated in primary

= * Michael Shurin, computer programmer

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Maria Karczewski, former Bayonne Local Redevelopment Authority commissioner

=Withdrew

= * Anthony Zanowic, independent candidate for the 13th district in 2010 * Washington Flores

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 9

Bill Pascrell, a Democrat who had represented the 8th district since 1997, and

, a Democrat who had represented the 9th district since 1997, both ran for the nomination in the new 9th district.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Bill Pascrell, incumbent U.S. Representative for the 8th District

=Eliminated in primary

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Declined

= *

Michael Wildes Michael Jay Wildes (born November 27, 1964) is an American immigration lawyer and politician who serves as the 38th and current Mayor of Englewood, New Jersey. He previously served as the 36th Mayor of Englewood from 2004 to 2010. A member of the ...

, former mayor of Englewood (''Endorsed Rothman'')

Endorsements

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

Shmuley Boteach Jacob Shmuel Boteach ( ; born November 19, 1966) is an American Orthodox Jewish rabbi, author, and television host. Boteach is the author of 31 books, including the best seller ''Kosher Sex: A Recipe for Passion and Intimacy'', and '' Kosher Jes ...

, rabbi, author, and radio talk show host

=Eliminated in primary

= * Blase Billack,

pharmaceutical sciences Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links healt ...

associate professor at St. John's University * Hector Castillo, ophthalmologist and independent candidate for

in 2005

Primary results

General election

Campaign

In the general election, Pascrell faced Rabbi

. Pascrell raised more money than any other congressional candidate in the nation in 2012, $2.6 million, 10x what Boteach raised.

Endorsements

Predictions

Results

Pascrell won in the overwhelmingly Democratic district, where Democrats outnumbered Republicans by 3-to-1, by a margin of 73.6% to 25.4%.

District 10

Democrat

Donald M. Payne Donald Milford Payne (July 16, 1934 – March 6, 2012) was an American politician who was the U.S. representative for from 1989 until his death. He was a member of the Democratic Party. The district encompassed most of the city of Newark ...

, who had represented the 10th district since 1989, died on March 6, 2012. As a matter of convenience and cost saving, a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

will be held in conjunction with the regularly-scheduled November general election. Voters will be asked on the November ballot to select two candidates: one to serve the remainder of Payne's term in November and December, and the other candidate to serve the full 2-year term beginning in January 2013. On June 5, 2012, in the Democratic primary for the special election, Payne's son,

Donald Payne Jr. Donald Milford Payne Jr. (born December 17, 1958) is an American politician who has been the U.S. representative for since 2012. A member of the Democratic Party, Payne served as president of the Newark city council from 2010 to 2012. Follow ...

, defeated Ronald C. Rice (son of State Senator

Ronald Rice Ronald L. Rice (born December 18, 1945) is a former American Democratic Party politician who has served in the New Jersey State Senate from 1986 to 2022. He represented the 28th Legislative District. Rice is one of the longest-serving state s ...

) and Irvington Mayor Wayne Smith. In the Democratic primary for the full term, held on the same day, Payne Jr. competed against Rice, Smith, State Senator Nia Gill, Cathy Wright, and Dennis Flynn. He won in a landslide, garnering 60 percent of the vote. Rice received 19 percent, Gill 17 percent, and Smith, Flynn and Wright combined for about 5 percent of the vote. In the general election held on November 6, 2012, Payne Jr. defeated Republican candidate Brian Kelemen and independent Joanne Miller for the special election to fill the remainder of his father's term.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, president of the Newark Municipal Council, member of the Essex County

, and son of former U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * Nia Gill, state senator * Ronald C. Rice, member of the

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

Municipal Council * Wayne Smith, Mayor of Irvington * Dennis Flynn, Iraq War veteran * Cathy Wright, sales support manager

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Brian Kelemen

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 11

Republican

Rodney Frelinghuysen Rodney Procter Frelinghuysen (born April 29, 1946) is an American former politician and lobbyist who served as the U.S. representative for from 1995 to 2019. The district includes most of Morris County, an affluent suburban county west of New ...

, who has represented the 11th district since 1995, will seek re-election.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Primary results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * John Arvanites, former mayor of Roseland

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 12

Democrat Rush Holt, who has represented the 12th district since 1999, will seek re-election. Kenneth J. Cody who ran in this district in 2010 will run again as an independent candidate.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Rush Holt, incumbent U.S. Representative

Primary results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Eric Beck, businessman and former New Jersey director of the Concord Coalition

=Declined

= * Scott Sipprelle, venture capitalist and nominee for this seat in 2010

Primary results

General election

Endorsements

Results

References

External links

Elections
from the New Jersey Secretary of State
United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey, 2012
at Ballotpedia
New Jersey U.S. House
at OurCampaigns.com
Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in New Jersey
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP) ...

Outside spending
at the Sunlight Foundation {{United States elections, 2012

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

United States House The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...