New Jersey's 7th congressional district
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| New Jersey's 7th congressional district | |
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| Population (2000) | 647,258 |
| Median income | $74,823 |
| Ethnic composition | 83.4% White, 4.6% Black, 8.2% Asian, 6.9% Hispanic, 0.1% Native American, 0.7% other |
| Cook PVI | R+1 |
New Jersey's Seventh Congressional District is currently represented by Republican Mike Ferguson. In 2006, Ferguson narrowly defeated Democratic Party nominee Linda Stender, an Assemblywoman and former Union County Freeholder and Fanwood mayor.
In the 2008 election, Ferguson is not seeking another term. Stender won the Democratic nomination unopposed, while Republican primary voters chose State Senator Leonard Lance in a field of eight candidates.
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[edit] Counties and municipalities in the district
For the 108th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2000 Census), the district contains portions of four counties and 54 municipalities.
- Alexandria Township, Bethlehem Township, Bloomsbury, Califon, Clinton, Clinton Township, Flemington, Glen Gardner, Hampton, High Bridge, Holland Township, Lebanon, Lebanon Township, Milford, Raritan Township, Readington, Tewksbury Township, Union Township
- Bedminster Township, Bound Brook, Branchburg Township, Bridgewater Township (part), Far Hills, Green Brook Township, Hillsborough Township, Manville, Millstone, Montgomery Township, North Plainfield, Peapack-Gladstone, Rocky Hill, South Bound Brook, Warren Township, Watchung
- Berkeley Heights, Clark, Cranford, Fanwood, Garwood, Kenilworth, Linden (part), Mountainside, New Providence, Roselle Park, Scotch Plains, Springfield, Summit, Union Township (part), Westfield, Winfield
[edit] 2006 Election
| Party | Candidate | Votes Won | Percent Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ferguson (Incumbent) | 98,399 votes | 49.42% |
| Democrat | Stender | 95,454 votes | 47.94% |
| Other | Abrams | 3,176 votes | 1.59% |
| Libertarian | Young | 2,046 votes | 1.02% |
Source: NJ Division of Elections. Official 2006 Election Results.[1].
[edit] Major Issues in 2006 Race
Linda Stender campaigned on the issues of stem cell research and the Iraq War, while Mike Ferguson campaigned on the issues of Ms. Stender's prior legislative record and her close ties to New Jersey's Democratic political machine.
[edit] Effect of redistricting
New Jersey's 7th district and the 12th district were redistricted after the 2000 census by a bipartisan panel. By consensus of the panel, the Democratic and Republican parties agreed to trade areas in the two districts to make them safer for their respective incumbents. It is likely that this trade off, which made New Jersey's 7th less competitive for Democrats had an effect on the outcome of 2006 election, which was decided by approximately 3,000 votes. Areas of the former 7th district such as Somerset in Franklin Township (Somerset County) that have historically voted reliably Democratic were moved into the 12th district to shore up the Democratic incumbent's hold on the adjacent 12th district. Despite the redistricting, NJ-07 is still the most competitive House district in New Jersey, and was the only one considered to be in play in 2006 by political pundits.
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