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New Jersey's 7th Congressional District elections, 2014
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November 4, 2014 |
June 3, 2014 |
Leonard Lance  |
Leonard Lance |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] FairVote's Monopoly Politics: Safe R[2] |
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The 7th Congressional District of New Jersey held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Rep. Leonard Lance (R) defeated Janice Kovach (D) and Jim Gawron (L) in the general election.
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. New Jersey utilizes a semi-closed primary process, in which the selection of a party's candidates in an election is generally limited to registered party members. Unaffiliated voters can register as party members at the polls on primary election day. Otherwise, a voter must indicate his or her party preference (e.g., via an updated voter registration) no later than the 55th day preceding the primary in order to vote in that party's primary.[4][5]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Voter registration: To vote in the primary, voters had to register by May 13, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 14, 2014 (21 days before election).[6]
- See also: New Jersey elections, 2014
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Leonard Lance (R), who was first elected in 2008.
New Jersey's 7th Congressional District is located in the northwestern portion of the state and includes Hunterdon County and portions of Essex, Morris, Somerset, Union, and Warren counties.[7]
Candidates
General election candidates
- Leonard Lance - Incumbent
Janice Kovach
Jim Gawron[8]
June 3, 2014, primary results
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Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Leonard Lance Incumbent |
59.3% | 104,287 | |
| Democratic | Janice Kovach | 38.8% | 68,232 | |
| Libertarian | Jim Gawron | 2% | 3,478 | |
| Total Votes | 175,997 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Division of Elections | ||||
Primary election
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Leonard Lance Incumbent |
54.4% | 15,900 | ||
| David Larsen | 45.6% | 13,308 | ||
| Total Votes | 29,208 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Division of Elections - Official Election Results |
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Issues
Kovach Petition Controversy
Although she had obtained the requisite 200 signatures and filed to run in the primary, Janice Kovach was not included in the initial list of candidates put out by the state Division of Elections. The division did not accept a number of the signatures because the person who had obtained them did not reside in the district. Susan Scarola, an administrative law judge, overturned the ruling in light of another case in which state Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson ruled it unconstitutional to require that the people collecting petitions be from the candidate's district. The decision was not overruled by Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, so Kovach was able to be on the ballot for June's primary election.[12]
Key votes
Government affairs
HR 676
On July 30, 2014, the U.S. House approved a resolution 225 to 201 to sue President Barack Obama for exceeding his constitutional authority. Five Republicans—Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Paul Broun of Georgia, Scott Garrett of New Jersey, Walter Jones of North Carolina and Steve Stockman of Texas—voted with Democrats against the lawsuit.[13] Lance joined the other 224 Republicans in favor of the lawsuit. All Democrats voted against the resolution.[14][15]
Campaign contributions
Leonard Lance
Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2014 elections season. Below are Lance's reports.[16]
| Leonard Lance (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[17] | April 14, 2013 | $161,504.95 | $67,605.00 | $(75,380.01) | $153,729.94 | ||||
| July Quarterly[18] | July 13, 2013 | $153,729.94 | $132,732.05 | $(90,483.08) | $195,978.91 | ||||
| October Quarterly[19] | October 14, 2013 | $195,978.91 | $111,496.00 | $(51,301.18) | $256,173.73 | ||||
| Year-End Quarterly[20] | December 31, 2013 | $256,173 | $179,984 | $(48,786) | $366,871 | ||||
| April Quarterly[21] | April 14, 2014 | $366,871.94 | $156,146.00 | $(57,264.48) | $465,753.46 | ||||
| Pre-Primary[22] | May 22, 2014 | $465,753.46 | $61,139.00 | $(137,852.06) | $389,040.40 | ||||
| July Quarterly (amended)[23] | September 5, 2014 | $389,040.40 | $113,841.00 | $(115,634.70) | $387,246.70 | ||||
| October Quarterly[24] | October 15, 2014 | $387,246.70 | $139,499.53 | $(127,367.37) | $399,378.86 | ||||
| Pre-General[25] | October 23, 2014 | $399,378.86 | $23,695.00 | $(122,102.42) | $300,971.44 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $986,137.58 | $(826,171.3) | ||||||||
Janice Kovach
Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2014 elections season. Below are Kovach's reports.[26]
| Janice Kovach (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[27] | April 14, 2014 | $0.00 | $18,709.33 | $(375.53) | $18,333.80 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $18,709.33 | $(375.53) | ||||||||
David Larsen
Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2014 elections season. Below are Larsen's reports.[28]
| David Larsen (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Year-End[29] | April 15, 2014 | $0.00 | $14,999.90 | $(14,999.90) | $0.00 | ||||
| April Quarterly[30] | April 15, 2014 | $0.00 | $15,010.59 | $(15,010.59) | $0.00 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $30,010.49 | $(30,010.49) | ||||||||
District history
| Candidate ballot access |
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2012
On November 6, 2012, Leonard Lance (R) won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Upendra Chivukula, Patrick McKnight and Dennis Breen in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Upendra Chivukula | 40% | 123,057 | |
| Republican | Leonard Lance Incumbent |
57.2% | 175,662 | |
| Libertarian | Patrick McKnight | 1.3% | 4,078 | |
| Independent | Dennis Breen | 1.5% | 4,518 | |
| Total Votes | 307,315 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
2010
On November 2, 2010, Leonard Lance won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Ed Potosnak (D) in the general election.[31]
| U.S. House, New Jersey District 7 General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Leonard Lance incumbent |
59.4% | 105,084 | |
| Democratic | Ed Potosnak | 40.6% | 71,902 | |
| Total Votes | 176,986 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey, 2014
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2014
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2014 House Race Ratings for August 8, 2014," accessed August 25, 2014
- ↑ FairVote's Monopoly Politics, "2014 House Projections," accessed August 25, 2014
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Races," accessed August 25, 2014
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "State Primary Election Types," accessed September 27, 2024
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Statutes & Rules § 19:23-45," accessed September 27, 2024
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State Website, "Voter Registration Information," accessed January 3, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed September 25, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Division of Elections, "General election candidates for U.S. House," accessed August 14, 2014
- ↑ Campaign Website, "Intro," accessed January 30, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Candidates for House of Representatives," accessed April 1, 2014
- ↑ NJ.com, "Democrat Janice Kovach announces run for N.J. congressional seat held by Leonard Lance," accessed January 27, 2014
- ↑ nj.com, "Democrat who wants to challenge Leonard Lance is back on ballot," accessed April 9, 2014
- ↑ U.S. House, "House Resolution 676," accessed July 30, 2014
- ↑ Associated Press, "Suing Obama: GOP-led House gives the go-ahead," July 31, 2014
- ↑ Washington Post, "House clears way for lawsuit against Obama," accessed July 30, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Lance 2014 Summary reports," accessed July 23, 2013
- ↑ FEC, "April Quarterly," accessed July 23, 2013
- ↑ FEC, "July Quarterly," accessed July 23, 2013
- ↑ FEC, "October Quarterly," accessed October 25, 2013
- ↑ FEC, "Year-End Quarterly," accessed February 12, 2014
- ↑ FEC, "April Quarterly," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ FEC, "Pre-Primary," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ FEC, "July Quarterly," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ FEC, "October Quarterly," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ FEC, "Pre-General," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Janice Kovach Summary Report," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Janice Kovach April Quarterly," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "David Larsen Summary Report," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "David Larsen Year-End," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "David Larsen April Quarterly," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
