{"id":154,"date":"2026-06-03T05:14:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T05:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=154"},"modified":"2026-06-03T05:14:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T05:14:18","slug":"missing-rep-tom-kean-jr-secures-republican-nomination-for-reelection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=154","title":{"rendered":"Missing Rep. Tom Kean Jr. Secures Republican Nomination for Reelection"},"content":{"rendered":"
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New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean Jr., who has been absent from Congress for roughly three months, won his uncontested primary on Tuesday, officially becoming the Republican nominee for his House race in November.<\/p>\n

Read more Supreme Court Allows Republican-Friendly Alabama Congressional Map<\/a><\/p>\n

Kean has not been seen in Washington, D.C., since early March \u2014 missing over 100 votes<\/u><\/span> in the House \u2014 and his neighbors in Westfield, New Jersey, told NOTUS<\/u><\/span> they don\u2019t know anything about his whereabouts.<\/p>\n

Candidates had until March 23 to file to run against Kean. By then, the congressman had been away from Washington for about a week, but his absence had not been widely reported. Kean first commented<\/u><\/span> on his absence on April 27, when he said it was due to a \u201cpersonal medical issue\u201d and that he would be back \u201cvery soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a social media post<\/u><\/span> on Monday, the day before the primary, President Donald Trump endorsed Kean, saying he was \u201cworking tirelessly\u201d for his district.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday night, Kean easily won. The Associated Press called the race immediately after polls closed in New Jersey at 8 p.m. ET.<\/p>\n

Maureen O\u2019Toole, a spokesperson for House Republicans\u2019 campaign arm, said Kean \u201chas been a tireless advocate for New Jersey families.\u201d<\/p>\n

His office and his campaign team did not respond to NOTUS\u2019 requests for comment on what his plans were on election night. Kean cast a ballot by mail last week, The New York Times reported<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n

Kean\u2019s team has been operating as if it\u2019s business as usual: The congressman on Monday introduced legislation<\/u><\/span>, he seemingly approved staff trips<\/u><\/span> in April, he traded stocks<\/u><\/span> in March, and his social media accounts have made posts written<\/u><\/span> in<\/u><\/span> first<\/u><\/span> person<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n

Read more Josh Turek\u2019s Big Win Places Him at the Heart of Democrats\u2019 Hopes<\/a><\/p>\n

Kean\u2019s campaign made several expenditures on Amtrak, Lyft and Uber for \u201ccandidate travel\u201d in mid-April, when Kean was missing from Congress, according to a campaign filing<\/u><\/span> submitted less than two weeks before the Tuesday primary.<\/p>\n

House GOP leaders have said they do not have any details around Kean\u2019s medical issues. Speaker Mike Johnson said in May that Kean would be back \u201csoon,\u201d and North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson \u2014 the National Republican Campaign Committee chair \u2014 told reporters that he did not know what Kean\u2019s medical issue was, but that he would be back voting in June. He did not provide an exact date. House members\u2019 first vote this month is scheduled for Wednesday.<\/p>\n

In a statement<\/u><\/span> made before his race was called, Kean said he \u201cwill transition from virtual work to in person work within a matter of weeks. At that time I will be completely transparent as to the nature of my medical condition.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand the need for transparency on this matter and I look forward to sharing my experience with the public,\u201d Kean added.<\/p>\n

Kean first won the seat in 2022 with 51% of the vote and was reelected in 2024 with 52%. The race for New Jersey\u2019s 7th Congressional District is one of the most competitive in 2026 and is being targeted<\/u><\/span> by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.<\/p>\n

\u201cD.C. Republicans are freaking out about losing this seat because even they know that Tom Kean Jr.\u2019s lack of transparency will dog him on the campaign trail \u2014 if he ever reemerges,\u201d DCCC spokesperson Eli Cousin told NOTUS in a statement. \u201cHis months-long absence has put a spotlight on his self-inflicted vulnerabilities including playing the stock market while in office, putting loyalty to Donald Trump first, and failing to show up when the people of New Jersey need him most.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kean will face Democrat Rebecca Bennett in November. Bennett won her party\u2019s nomination Tuesday night, according to the AP, against three other challengers: Brian Varela, Michael Roth and Tina Shah.<\/p>\n

Read more Bill Pulte\u2019s Surprise Appointment Could Kill a Key Spy Powers Reauthorization<\/a><\/p>\n

This story has been updated to include the race call for the Democratic nominee.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kean has been absent from the House since March, but he just secured the Republican nomination for November\u2019s midterms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2026-election"],"yoast_head":"\nMissing Rep. Tom Kean Jr. Secures Republican Nomination for Reelection - Modern Home Journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=154\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Missing Rep. 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