TRENTON, N.J. – On the same afternoon that Tom Kean Jr. announced he isn’t running for reelection in LD21, 2020 GOP U.S. Senate nominate Rikin Mehta says he’s running for the Republican House nod in NJ-07 (the same prize Kean is retiring from the State Senate to pursue).
“Today I am announcing that I will be running for Congress in the 7th Congressional district and I will continue to fight on your behalf because the survival of our state, the well being of our family, and the future of our children depend on it,” said Mehta in a statement released on social media. “I will not back down from either side, I will put the people first always and together we will win this battle for the sake of our state, our nation, and our Constitution.”
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Kean will be heavily-favored for the nomination after falling short in his 2020 battle with incumbent Democrat Tom Malinowski by less than 5,000 votes. He’s also expected to have near-total support from the establishment and fundraising sectors.
The underdog hopes his earned name recognition can help even the odds.
Mehta – a pharmacist and attorney who is relatively new to politics – lost to Cory Booker by a wide double-digit margin but, given 2020’s large vote-by-mail turnout, Mehta’s 1.8+ million general election votes is the current raw vote record for a statewide Republican candidate.
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