Representative Tom Kean, Jr. (R-NJ) is one of the 18 House Republicans serving in districts President Joe Biden won in 2020. The son of former Governor Tom Kean (1982-1990) is running for re-election in 2024. In May, Sue Altman, head of New Jersey’s liberal-leaning Working Families Alliance, announced that she’s running for Kean’s seat in the Seventh District.
While Republicans (including Kean) have struggled to nominate and vote for a Speaker of the House to replace Kevin McCarthy, Altman has been trolling Kean for keeping his votes a secret.
When Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) was a nominee and Kean did not reveal if he supported Scalise or not (it was a secret ballot), Altman told voters, “When I am in Congress I promise you will ALWAYS know how I voted. I will not keep secrets from our constituents!!”
Kean won’t say if he supported Scalise – once again dodging accountability in his district.
— Sue Altman (@suealtman) October 11, 2023
We deserve better representation.
When I am in Congress I promise you will ALWAYS know how I voted. I will not keep secrets from our constituents!!#FlipNJ7 https://t.co/Mc0Y0vLZFd
With Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) the current Republican Speaker of the House nominee looking for 217 votes on the House floor, Altman continues to hound Kean for his vote.
Altman is sharing reporting from CNN’s Chief Congressional Correspondent Manu Raju, who wrote on October 16: “Several members in swing districts won’t say how they’ll vote tomorrow in speaker’s race. Tom Kean Jr., a freshman from a bellwether NJ district, walked in silence when we asked if he would vote for Jim Jordan.”
Everyone here in Jersey knows Tom Kean Jr won’t talk to his constituents. Apparently he won’t talk to CNN reporters either!
— Sue Altman (@suealtman) October 16, 2023
Clearly Kean Jr doesn’t think he needs to answer to anybody except his donors. #FlipNJ7 https://t.co/NtaqiP7KAJ
Altman writes: “Clearly Kean Jr doesn’t think he needs to answer to anybody except his donors.”
Note: Former NJ Congressman Robert Torricelli told The New York Times he believes the Kean/Altman race could “be one of the premier nationwide matchups” as Democrats work to flip the House majority.
Torricelli added: “This is the kind of district where people think they’re Republicans. But they’re also pro-environment, pro-choice and culturally progressive.”
