N.J. primary election: Zack Mullock wins Democratic primary in 2nd District to face Van Drew; Republicans pick nominee to challenge Booker

As they chose nominees for the U.S. Senate and 12 congressional seats, New Jersey voters expressed their passionate thoughts about the economy and the future of the nation, about gas prices, about a menu of issues from the proliferation of warehouses to a controversial artificial intelligence data center.

But on what turned out to be one spectacular June day, evidently most New Jersey voters opted to exercise their right not to participate in the 2026 New Jersey primary.

An exception was flight attendant Chico Bradley, 48, of Cherry Hill, even though the races in his area were not especially compelling. “Being an African American man, a Black American, people died for what I’m doing,” Bradley said. Voting “matters on a deeper level.”

Joseph Viso, 21, president of Stockton University Democrats, supported Bayly Winder in the 2nd Congressional District primary and was surprised by the results.

“I really didn't know where this was going to go tonight, but I expected it to be a lot tighter of a race … I was expecting to be here a couple more hours,” said Viso, a rising senior who studies political science.

He said Winder did a good job engaging with young voters, but he also noticed that Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock exceeded all the other candidates’ social media followings as the election got closer.

Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock took the stage around 9:45 p.m. to a joyful crowd and joked that he had had a concession speech written. 

“Give it to Van Drew!” a supporter shouted. 

Mullock noted that he got 95% of the vote in his home town. 

Bayly Winder conceded the race to Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock around 9:40 p.m. Winder was the best-funded candidate by far, and yet he was in third place in the four-way race when the Associated Press called it.

“I called Zack to congratulate him, and we're going to do everything we can to flip this seat,” Winder said to his supporters.

“It's not the outcome we hoped for, but the fact remains the same that this is a year where we can make a big push and finally get rid of Van Drew, and we should all, I think, take comfort in the fact that the Democratic movement across NJ-2 is building,” he added.

Adam Hamawy is poised to take over retiring U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman's seat in the 12th Congressional District after coming out on top in a crowded Democratic primary that featured a dozen active candidates.

Watson Coleman last year announced she would not seek reelection for the seat she had held since 2014. She was the first Black woman to represent New Jersey in Congress, as well as the first Black woman to become majority leader in the New Jersey General Assembly, where she previously served eight terms.

"Now is the time to pass the torch to the next leader who will continue leading this charge,” Watson Coleman said in announcing her retirement.

Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock won the Democratic primary to face U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, the Associated Press projected.

Mullock, 40, defeated Bayly Winder, the best-funded candidate with experience in the federal government, civil rights attorney and former nominee Tim Alexander, and grassroots candidate Terri Reese to become the Democratic nominee for the 2nd Congressional district.

Mullock celebrated with supporters at the Chalfonte Hotel in Cape May, which his family owns.

Bayly Winder entered his party a few minutes after 9 p.m. as votes continued to be tallied.

With about 50% of votes counted, Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock was in the lead with about 39% of the vote. Winder, with about 22% of the vote, also trailed third-time candidate Tim Alexander, a civil rights attorney.

“I'm just so grateful to each and every one of you for being a part of this,” he said. “And we're going to wait to see what happens.”

As early returns showed him in a commanding lead, Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock came into the crowded room at the Chalfonte Hotel to greet his supporters, hand over his heart in gratitude, a smile on his face.

Marie Blistan, chair of the Cape May County Democrats declared, "We are taking CD 2 back!" to cheers and applause.

Mullock and his wife, Justine, said he wanted to thank his supporters, "the people who jumped into this race immediately when I said I was thinking about it, and people, said, okay, let's go start knocking on doors."

Former Navy pilot Rebecca Bennett will serve as the Democratic candidate for the 7th Congressional District this fall, when she will challenge Republican incumbent Rep. Thomas Kean Jr.

Bennett, of Bridgewater, beat out fellow Democratic candidates Michael Roth, Tina Shah, and Brian Varela in Tuesday's primary. Her win came amid concerns over the health of her Republican opponent, who has been out of the public eye for months due to an undisclosed health condition.

Kean, however, checked in with Republican officials in the state in late May, according to the New York Times. A spokesperson said the second-term congressman was "focused on his recovery."

The TV screens at the Ludlam Island Brewery in Woodbine all had sports playing them — not the news.

But off to the side in a room with a bright blue floor, about 35 Bayly Winder supporters and campaign staffers chatted as hits like “Footloose” played at a respectable volume from a vintage-style Marshall speaker.

Blue, white, and yellow balloons decorated two long tables that matched Winder signs on the wall. American flag napkins, star-shaped sunglasses, and Winder campaign buttons could be found on the tables.

U.S. Rep. Analilia Mejia successfully defended her seat against a trio of Democratic primary challengers in Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s former congressional district, the Associated Press projected.

The 11th Congressional District includes parts of Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties in North Jersey. Mejia, 48, a longtime progressive organizer, won the seat in an April special election.

She warded off challenges Tuesday from former Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello, who presented himself as a moderate, Joseph Lewis, who works in tech and was vocal about his support for Israel, and Justin Strickland, a Chatham council member who came in sixth in the special primary.

Supporters of Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock gathered at the historic Chalfonte Hotel on Howard Street, which is now owned by the Mullock family. The 19th-century landmark was festooned with Mullock signs and patriotic bunting as people sipped beers and wine at the bar and music from the Avett Brothers played overhead.

After polls closed, supporters moved to the Henry Sawyer Room, once known in particular to imbibing locals as "the Playroom," to await results.

Yogi Kurtz, a Shore restaurateur who said he was a Republican when Jeff Van Drew was a Democrat, and now is a Democrat, said Mullock had what it takes.

At Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish Hall, where Democratic Congressional candidate and Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock voted earlier in the day, Barbara Hughes, 84, said she voted for her mayor.

"You bet I did," said Hughes, a descendent of the prominent Hughes family, whalers with roots in Cape May dating to the 17th century. "He's done a good job."

She recalled when during this winter's blizzard when Mullock came around people's snowed in homes on his own personal tractor to help.

For Patty Ryan, 70, of Gibbstown, Gloucester County, former USAID official Bayly Winder is the man to replace Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew in Congress. 

Ryan, a retired Aramark employee, voted for Winder without knowing anything about him. But that's kind of the point. 

“He’s new to me, but maybe that means he can change the way things are done,” Ryan said as she walked out of the Greenwich Library where she cast her ballot for something different. “I am so tired of Van Drew, who’s all for Trump. I'm a Democrat, and I am not all for Trump.” 

It wasn’t a hard choice for 71-year-old Doug Clark when it came to voting in Swedesboro, Gloucester County, Tuesday: He wants a Democrat to unseat incumbent Republican candidate Jeff Van Drew in the race to lead the sprawling 2nd Congressional District. 

“I went with one of the four Democratic candidates,” he said. “It's my business which one.” 

It had to be a Democrat, he said, because President Donald Trump needs to be brought under control by the U.S. House.

A broom held open the door to the voting room at the Uptown School Complex in Atlantic City. Voters trickled in and out of the side door as parents came and went from a main door of the campus surrounded on all sides by a skyline of casinos.

Sporting a black and hot pink tracksuit, Sherrie Terrell, a 70-year-old Democrat and retired school social worker and teacher, emerged from a white convertible and cast her ballot for Tim Alexander. She said she selected him because she was familiar with him.

"I know he's ran before and I've heard him before and I had more knowledge on him than anybody else," Terrell said.

At around 11:30 a.m., steps from the Atlantic Ocean, Donna Shapiro, 76, and Helene Denafo, 98, came down the ramp of the Ventnor Community Building. Shapiro was assisting Denafo who was using a walker.

Both Republicans, the women said they were eager to back U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew again because of his hands-on approach to assisting constituents and his support for local industries.

"I've been voting for him all along," Shapiro said. "He really helps the state of New Jersey."

At the Upper Township rec center in mostly Republican Cape May County, teacher Linda Galardi, 31, a Democrat, said she voted for progressive Terri Reese, considered by most to be the longshot of the Democratic candidates in New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District.

"I just felt like she would probably be a better candidate compared to the current situation," Galardi said. "Maybe she'll fight a little bit more for us."

She said she'd learned about Reese from friends and family. She said she considered the most important issue facing the country "just all this corruption."

In Ocean City, Thomas Muller, 70, a Republican who said he supports President Donald Trump "for the most part," said he came out to vote for U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, even though he was uncontested.

"That was important," he said. "I like the fact that he's been doing it awhile and I think he keeps the Shore towns in his thoughts."

He said he thought the general election would be closer than in the past, but that Van Drew would still triumph.

In Vineland, Cumberland County, voters seemed scarce.

At one polling place — Vineland Fire Headquarters — just 10 people cast their ballots in seven hours, according to a person works in the fire department.

At Esther Olivio Towers, a seniors residence, a man who wouldn't give his name said a controversial $17 billion, 2.6 million-square-foot AI data center being built in the area to supply computing power to Microsoft was an issue on everyone’s mind in Vineland.

Standing outside of a quiet Carman Tilelli Community Center in Cherry Hill Tuesday morning, Marianne Burpulis, 77, said the soaring cost of living is top of mind these days.

With gas prices averaging over $4 per gallon, Burpulis, a retired teacher and widow, said she now thinks twice before moving her car. Groceries are “out of sight” and a new prescription medication is costing her $750 per month.

“After working as a teacher in a high school for 43 years, they’re reaping the benefits of bilking us,” said Burpulis, a Democrat.

Both major parties made gains in voter registrations in the last year in New Jersey, but the Democrats’ advantage over Republicans remained virtually unchanged, according to the latest state figures.

The ranks of the Democrats increased 3.7% from June of last year, to 2,543,355, compared to the Republicans’ 1,678,469, up 3.3%.

The numbers of the unaffiliated, which rival those of the Democrats and well exceed Republican registrants, declined 1.3%, to 2,392,538.

After filling out his ballot at Oakcrest High School in Mays Landing around 9 a.m., Bayly Winder stopped to chat with The Inquirer about why he says he's the candidate who can and should unseat Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew.

“I think the energy our campaign has brought across the district has really been meeting the moment,” said the 34-year-old Democrat. “I believe we've built a campaign that's really responsive to what people are worried about whether it's data centers, whether it’s corruption, or the Iran War.”

Winder has been particularly involved with a fight to push back against the continued development of a data center in Vineland. His willingness to throw his weight behind a local issue in the district gives voters a taste of what he could achieve as a member of Congress, he said.

With his wife, Anna, and son beside him, Tim Alexander, a third-time candidate for the Democratic nomination for congress in New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District, voted at the leafy Smithville Community Center and said he felt the time was right to unseat Jeff Van Drew.

After some initial confusion by election workers over his son's and his ballots — both are named Tim — the family once again voted for Alexander, a civil rights attorney and former detective captain with the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office. Alexander has the support of UniteHERE Local 54 and several local Democratic organizations throughout the sprawling Shore district.

"We're super excited," Alexander said in the crisp morning. He said the campaign had knocked on 834 doors the day before throughout the district, and another group was also actively campaigning for him. "There's no stones unturned," he said. "It's all hands on deck."

New Jersey Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. hasn’t been seen publicly for nearly three months and has missed more than 100 House votes.

That didn't prevent him from receiving an endorsement from Donald Trump, who claimed Kean Jr. has been "working tirelessly" to promote the president's agenda.

"Tom Kean has my Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election," Trump wrote on his Truth Social account Monday night, urging his supporters to vote Tuesday

By 7 a.m. Tuesday, the polling place in the township hall in Woolwich, Gloucester County, was bereft of voters. 

Though polls were already open for an hour, democracy had few takers in the coolness of Tuesday morning. Joggers passed by, school buses clogged the streets, and the Shop Rite opened for business, but few levers were being pulled.

Shawn Jones, a 53-year-old who works at a law firm in Philadelphia, said gas prices were eating his disposable income, reason enough to vote against the Republican administration and incumbent Jeff Van Drew.

New Jersey voters will head to the polls Tuesday to vote in the state’s primary elections, though it’ll be a mostly sleepy affair in South Jersey.

With no state legislative seats on the ballot, voters will be casting votes on party nominees for November’s U.S. House races, as well as county and municipal offices. There’s also a Republican primary for U.S. Senate, with the winner landing the tall task of unseating incumbent Sen. Cory Booker (D., N.J.) in the fall.

New Jersey’s primary is a closed election, which means only Democrats can vote for Democrats and Republicans can vote for Republicans. Anyone not registered in New Jersey with either party (roughly 2.5 million of the state’s nearly 6.7 million registered voters) won’t be able to weigh in on any of the federal races. Though voters are allowed to switch their party affiliation at the polls Tuesday.

South Jersey Democrats in the sprawling 2nd Congressional District will decide on Tuesday who should face U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew in this year’s midterms.

Van Drew was elected as Democrat in 2018 before switching parties and vowing his loyalty to President Donald Trump just one year later and has comfortably held onto his seat.

The South Jersey district stretches from parts of the Philadelphia suburbs across farmland, shore towns, and Atlantic City casinos. The Republican has won by double digits the last two elections and the closest a Democrat has gotten to beating him was in 2020 when Amy Kennedy fell nearly 6 points behind him.

Four Republicans are vying to face U.S. Sen Cory Booker, despite his popularity in New Jersey and his campaign’s massive bank account.

New Jersey has not elected a Republican to serve in the U.S. Senate since 1972 — two were appointed in 1982 and 2013 — and Democrats outnumber Republicans by about 859,000. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s approval rating has plummeted, and voters who remain concerned about the high prices of gas and groceries blame Republicans for their woes.

But the GOP candidates say they largely stand by Trump. If Republicans can win enough independent voters, they argue they have a shot against Booker, who they see as more focused on a potential presidential run than serving New Jersey.