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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 from the state of New Jersey, a loss of one seat following the 2010 United States Census. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate.
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Redistricting
Redistricting in New Jersey is the responsibility of the New Jersey Redistricting Commission, 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, who has represented the 1st district since 1990, will seek re-election. Francis Tenaglio, a former Pennsylvania state Representative who ran for Governor in 2005, will challenge Andrews in the Democratic primary.
Gregory Horton, the athletic director of Clearview Regional High School, is running unopposed the Republican nomination.
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, who has represented the 2nd district since 1995, will seek re-election. Mike Assad, a member of the Absecon Board of Education, will challenge LoBiondo in the Republican primary.
David W Bowen Sr., a Businessman, a Real Estate Investor and Public Speaker, is running as an Independent - The People's Agenda.
Cassandra Shober, an office manager, is seeking the Democratic nomination. Democratic State Senator Jeff Van Drew will not run.
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 were added to the district, while Cherry Hill and Bass River were removed. Republican Jon Runyan, who has represented the 3rd district since January 2011, won re-election in November 2012. Justin Murphy, a former member of the Tabernacle Township Committee and unsuccessful Republican primary candidate for the seat in 2010, will not run.
Former U.S. Representative John Adler, 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, 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 Democratic nomination, will not run.
Candidate Frederick John LaVergne of Delanco, New Jersey, is running as a "Democratic-Republican" Democratic-Republican Party - the party designation of Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and John Quincy Adams. Democratic-Republicans favor a strict interpretation of the Constitution in limiting central government in favor of the People, strong States' Rights, and are against central banking. Mr. LaVergne is also involved in the lawsuit, Docket # 12-1171 [1] in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals to compel recognition of the ratification of Article the First of the Bill of Rights, which deals with the Apportionment of "The People's House", and to further compel its application according to the 2010 Decennial Census. - see [2] He will be bracketed with Freeholder Candidates Kim Johnson and Donald Letton of Burlington County, and Scott Neuman and Tracy Caprioni of Ocean County. Mr. LaVergne is a lifelong New Jersey resident.
Runyan announced he would need seek re-election 2014. Former US Senate candidate Lungen will run for the seat in November 2014.
Robert Witterschein, an accountant, is running as an Independent.
District 4
In redistricting, parts of Burlington County were removed from the district. Republican Chris Smith, who has represented the 4th congressional district since 1981, sought re-election. Terrence McGowan, a retired firefighter, police officer, and Navy SEAL, challenged Smith in the Republican primary.
Brian Froelich, a retired executive and business consultant, ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Patricia Bennett, an attorney, had also planned to run but dropped out.
District 5
Republican Scott Garrett, 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 and went on to win in November with just about 55% of the vote.
Jason Castle, an information technology executive and Marine; Adam Gussen, the deputy mayor of Teaneck; and Diane Sare, a chorus director and LaRouche political organizer, all ran for the Democratic nomination to challenge Garrett; Gussen eventually won the primary. Terry Duffy, the director of the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders, had planned to run but ended his bid in March 2012. Harry Carson, a former linebacker for the New York Giants; former Bergen County Sheriff Leo McGuire; Jim McQueeny, a public relations executive and former News12 anchor; and state assemblywoman Connie Wagner, will not run. Steve Rothman, a Democrat who has represented the 9th district since 1997 and was expected to seek re-election in the 5th district, instead ran in the 9th district. Patricia Alessandrini ran as a candidate of the Green Party for the seat.
Mark Quick, a former member of the Warren County Republican Committee who challenged Garrett as an Independent in 2010, had stated that he would as a candidate of the Reform Party of New Jersey. He withdrew from the race and did not qualify for the ballot.
District 6
Democrat Frank Pallone, who has represented the 6th district since 1993 (and previously represented the 3rd district from 1988 until 1993), will seek re-election. Ernesto Cullari, an orthopedic practitioner, and Anna Little, the former mayor of Highlands who unsuccessfully challenged Pallone as the Republican nominee in 2010, will seek the Republican nomination to challenge Pallone.
District 7
Republican Leonard Lance, who has represented the 7th district since 2009, will run for re-election. The 7th district was made more favorable to Republicans in redistricting. David Larsen, a businessman who unsuccessfully challenged Lance in the Republican primary in 2010, will run again.
State Assemblyman Upendra J. Chivukula is running 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 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 is running as the Libertarian candidate.
District 8
The new 8th district is the successor to the 13th district. Democrat Albio Sires, who has represented the 13th district since 2006, will seek re-election in this district. Michael Shurin, a computer programmer, will challenge Sires in the Democratic primary.
Maria Karczewski, a former commissioner of the Bayonne Local Redevelopment Authority, and Anthony Zanowic, who ran as an Independent against Sires in the 13th district in 2010, will seek the Republican nomination.
District 9
Bill Pascrell, a Democrat who has represented the 8th district since 1997, and Steve Rothman, a Democrat who has represented the 9th district since 1997, both ran for the nomination in the new 9th district. Michael Wildes, the former mayor of Englewood, will not run and instead endorsed Rothman. Pascrell won the Democratic primary in June.
Blase Billack, a pharmaceutical sciences associate professor at St. John's University and Shmuley Boteach, a rabbi, author, and radio talk show host, sought the Republican nomination. Boteach won the Republican primary.
District 10
Democrat Donald M. Payne, who had represented the 10th district since 1989, died on March 6, 2012. As a matter of convenience and cost saving, a special election 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. (president of the Newark Municipal Council and member of the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders), defeated Ronald C. Rice (son of State Senator Ronald Rice) 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 of Newark, and Dennis R. Flynn of Glen Ridge. 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 to be held on November 6, 2012, Payne Jr. will face Republican candidate Brian C. Kelemen and will run against independent Joanne Miller for the special election to fill the remainder of his father's term.
District 11
Republican Rodney Frelinghuysen, who has represented the 11th district since 1995, will seek re-election. John Arvanites, a former mayor of Roseland, is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination to challenge Frelinghuysen.
District 12
Democrat Rush Holt, who has represented the 12th district since 1999, will seek re-election. Eric Beck, a businessman and former New Jersey director of the Concord Coalition, is running unopposed for the Republican nomination to challenge Holt. Kenneth J. Cody who ran in this district in 2010 will run again as an independent candidate. Scott Sipprelle, a venture capitalist who unsuccessfully challenged Holt as the Republican nominee in 2010, will not run.