New Jersey’s “Rabble-Rouser”: NJ-07 Coalesces Around Sue Altman

"'[Altman] is just more than anyone I've seen in my lifetime, running for office as a reflection of her integrity, her authenticity, her honesty, and the degree to which she genuinely cares.'"

A new profile from HuffPost highlights how Democratic candidate Sue Altman is seeing success across the political spectrum in her campaign to replace vulnerable New Jersey Republican Tom Kean Jr.

When voters "talk about what draws them to Altman," writes HuffPost, "they often describe her as someone 'smart,' who simply puts in the work." Similarly, Kean Jr. is also putting in the work - only, he's working his hardest to enable the far-right fringes of the Republican party, including fundraising alongside MAGA Mike Johnson.

On top of outraising the vulnerable Republican incumbent in the first quarter of 2024, "Altman's success with rank-and-file Democrats in the district [has been] its own testament to her electability " as she shakes up the political system in New Jersey.

DCCC Spokesperson Aidan Johnson:
"Sue Altman is the definition of a candidate who cares about the needs of her community - and she's proving it. While Tom Kean Jr. is twiddling his thumbs in the do-nothing Republican majority, Altman is on the ground in New Jersey listening to voters and building a strong campaign to flip NJ-07 and bring true leadership and integrity back to New Jersey."

Read more below.

HuffPost: New Jersey's Activist-In-Chief Wants To Flip A Swing Seat
Daniel Marans | April 28, 2024

• Sue Altman first made national headlines when she was expelled from a New Jersey state Senate hearing by state troopers in November 2019.

• That kind of stint as a rabble-rouser is not exactly the textbook prelude to a congressional run in a Republican-held seat, but Altman is not one to follow conventions.

• Speaking to HuffPost ahead of the Hunterdon County Democratic Committee's convention in late February, Altman sounded every bit the mainstream Democrat fuming about the GOP's threat to our dearest values.

• "Democracy is at stake at a national level," she said.

• Kean "is the representative of the national Republican Party, more so than the representative of this district," Altman said.

• With the energy of someone perpetually in a rush and the height of a former college basketball player, Altman has a kind of natural, effervescent charisma.

• "I actually don't think this moment is really about progressive versus moderate or this faction versus that faction of the Democratic Party," she told HuffPost. "I actually see this moment as being about public service, about restoring democracy, fighting corruption."

• [Malinowski] suggested Altman's success with rank-and-file Democrats in the district was its own testament to her electability.

• "These people are very pragmatic. They're not uber-progressive," he said. "They have one interest in a congressional race, which is winning."

• When Democrats talk about what draws them to Altman, they often describe her as someone "smart," who simply puts in the work to win their votes.

• "When I went to hear her speak, I was thinking, 'We're not going to win this one with a Working Families person,'" said Sharon Glover, a homemaker from Tewksbury, who attended the county convention as a delegate. "But once I heard her speak, I'm like, she's really smart. She really understands our community. She wants to listen and we don't always get that."

• That appeal extends to moderate voters like Jordan Glatt, a university administrator who previously ran a successful consumer goods manufacturer and served as mayor of Summit. Glatt told HuffPost that he identifies as a "conservative Democrat," because of his fiscal conservatism and social liberalism.

• He gravitated to Altman because "she went and took on the political bosses. She wasn't partisan about who she spoke out against," he said. "When she saw a wrong in South Jersey, she spoke up."

• Altman also reached out to Lisa Grattan, a retired attorney from Summit and self-described moderate who has "an aversion to staunch ideology and reflexiveness." Like Glatt, Grattan saw Altman's clashes with the New Jersey machine as a testament to her principles. She did not receive personal outreach from any other candidates, and appreciated learning from Altman that she had gone to high school with one of Altman's aunts.

• "She is just more than anyone I've seen in my lifetime, running for office as a reflection of her integrity, her authenticity, her honesty, and the degree to which she genuinely cares," she said.

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