New Jersey's 7th congressional district election, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
.jpg)
Congressman Leonard Lance defeated state Assembly Woman Linda Stender in a long fought race for the highly competitive seat. Leonard Lance announced his plans to continue to "fight for the republican party I have come to know" and stating that he has suggested an update to the Republican Party.
The incumbent, Republican Representative Mike Ferguson, announced on November 19, 2007, that he would not seek reelection, citing family obligations.
The district was considered to lean Republican, but the 2008 election was expected to be highly competitive, considering the closeness of the 2006 election when Ferguson, the incumbent Republican, narrowly defeated Stender, the Democratic challenger. Ultimately, Lance received 50.8% of the vote and was elected to serve in Congress.
Linda Stender, New Jersey Assemblywoman, and the 2006 Congressional nominee, was unopposed in the Democratic primary. She was narrowly defeated by Ferguson in the 2006 election.
Seven candidates appeared on the Republican primary ballot:
Three other candidates who had sought support in Republican conventions in the district, but failed to win any organizational support, declined to file petitions to run in the Republican primary: Warren Mayor Victor Sordillo, Bridgewater Councilman Michael Hsing, and former Hillsborough Deputy Mayor Chris Venis. Hsing, however, later filed to run in the general election as an independent.
During the convention process, Lance won the "organization line" in Hunterdon and Somerset Counties, which together account for about 70 percent of the Republican primary voters in the district. Hatfield won the line in Union County and Whitman won in Middlesex County. The portion of the district in Middlesex has by far the fewest number of registered Republican voters of any of the four counties in the district.
...
Wikipedia