Thomas Howard Kean Jr. ( ; born September 5, 1968) is an American Republican politician and the U.S. representative-elect from New Jersey's 7th congressional district. From 2001 until 2003, he was a New Jersey General Assemblyman, representing the 21st legislative district, which includes parts of

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

, Morris,

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, and

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

counties. In 2003, he was elected a

New Jersey state senator The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232, ...

representing the same district, and in January 2008 he became minority leader of the New Jersey Senate, serving in the position until retiring from the Senate in 2022. After Governor Chris Christie was reelected in 2013, Christie tried and failed to remove Kean as minority leader. Kean was frequently mentioned as a potential Republican candidate for governor in the

2017 New Jersey gubernatorial election Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine * ''Seventeen'' (Japanese ...

, but did not seek the nomination. He was the Republican nominee for New Jersey's 7th congressional district in 2020, narrowly losing to incumbent

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Tom Malinowski in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

. He was the Republican nominee for the 7th district again in 2022, defeating Malinowski in a rematch.

Early life

Kean was born in

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

, one of twin sons of Deborah (née Bye) and Thomas Kean, who went on to be twice elected governor of New Jersey, serving from 1982 to 1990; the couple also had a daughter. Thomas Jr. grew up on the family's estate in Livingston. His grandfather is Robert Kean, a former congressman from New Jersey. His great-grandfather

Hamilton Fish Kean Hamilton Fish Kean (February 27, 1862December 27, 1941) was a U.S. Senator from New Jersey. Early life Kean was the son of Lucy (née Halstead) and John Kean. He was related to several prominent American politicians including his great-grandfathe ...

and great-great-uncle John Kean were both U.S. senators. His grandmother's family are descendants of

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...

, the Dutch colonial governor of

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...

(now known as

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

). His great-grandmother Katharine Winthrop was a direct descendant of John Winthrop, the first governor of the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...

. He is also a direct descendant of Thomas Dudley, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and a signer of

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

's charter. His second great-great-uncle was

Hamilton Fish Hamilton Fish (August 3, 1808September 7, 1893) was an American politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York from 1849 to 1850, a United States Senator from New York from 1851 to 1857 and the 26th United States Secretary of State fro ...

, a U.S. senator, governor of New York, and U.S. Secretary of State. He is also a relative of

William Livingston William Livingston (November 30, 1723July 25, 1790) was an American politician who served as the first governor of New Jersey (1776–1790) during the American Revolutionary War. As a New Jersey representative in the Continental Congress, he sig ...

, the first governor of New Jersey. Kean graduated from the

Pingry School The Pingry School is a coeducational, independent, college preparatory country day school in New Jersey, with a Lower School (K–5) campus in the Short Hills neighborhood of Millburn, and a Middle (6–8) and Upper School (9–12) campus ...

in Basking Ridge. He is also a graduate of

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

and holds a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...

, where he completed doctoral studies ABD in international relations. At Dartmouth, he was a member of the Psi Upsilon fraternity. He was an aide to former Congressman Bob Franks and a special assistant at the

United States Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...

in the

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

administration. He has also been a volunteer firefighter and a volunteer

emergency medical technician An emergency medical technician (EMT), also known as an ambulance technician, is a health professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found working in ambulances. In English-speaking countries, paramedics are ...

. Kean resides in Westfield, with his wife, Rhonda, and their two daughters.

New Jersey Assembly

Kean was appointed to the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

, the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

, in April 2001, to serve out the unexpired term of Alan Augustine, who had resigned on March 21, 2001, for health reasons. He was elected to a full term in the Assembly in November 2001. In the Assembly, he chaired the Republican Policy Committee and served as vice chair of the State Government Committee.

New Jersey Senate

Tenure

In March 2003, Kean was appointed to the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232, ...

to serve out the unexpired term of Rich Bagger, and won election to that Senate seat in November 2003. In 2004, he was elected Senate Minority Whip, a position he held until 2007. He served in the Senate on the Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee.Senator Thomas H. Kean Jr. legislative web page

. Accessed April 17, 2008. In the state legislature, Kean was a proponent of ethics reform in New Jersey government. He was the original sponsor of legislation banning

pay to play Pay-to-play, sometimes pay-for-play or P2P, is a phrase used for a variety of situations in which money is exchanged for services or the privilege to engage in certain activities. The common denominator of all forms of pay-to-play is that one mus ...

practices in New Jersey. He sponsored legislation to streamline government, promote education, protect the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

, and lower

property tax A property tax or millage rate is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net wealth, taxes on the change of ownership of property through inheri ...

es. Kean was one of 24 elected officials chosen as an Aspen Rodel Fellow in Public Service. In 2002, Kean was named one of 40 state leaders nationwide to be recognized as a Toll Fellow by the Council of State Governments for high achievement and service to state government. In 2005, the New Jersey Conference of Mayors named Kean a Legislative Leader. He also received, for the second year in a row, the Amerigroup Foundation's Champion for Children award for his advocacy on behalf of children's health issues. He was named Legislator of the year by the Fireman's Benevolent Association and received a 100% voting rating from the

National Federation of Independent Business The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) is an association of small businesses in the United States. It is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, with offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals. The goal of NFIB is to ad ...

.Senator Tom Kean, Jr.
New Jersey Senate Republicans. Accessed November 23, 2016. Kean was one of six Republicans in the state senate to vote for a 2019 appropriations bill that passed 31 to 6.

Committees

*Commerce *Higher Education *Legislative Oversight *Legislative Services Commission

2006 U.S Senate Campaign

Kean was the Republican nominee for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

seat vacated by former U.S. senator and former

governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...

Jon Corzine, a seat now filled by Corzine's designated replacement,

Bob Menendez Robert Menendez (; born January 1, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from New Jersey, a seat he has held since 2006. Gale Biography In Context. A member of the Democratic Party, he was firs ...

. Kean won the June 6, 2006, primary against John P. Ginty by a 3–1 margin. He lost the general election to Menendez, 53.3% to 44.3%. The race was the narrowest victory for an incumbent Democrat in the U.S. in an election that saw Democrats retake control of the Senate as part of a nationwide backlash against the Bush administration. Kean was endorsed by ''

The Courier-Post The ''Courier-Post'' is a morning daily newspaper that serves South Jersey in the Delaware Valley. It is based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and serves most of Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester counties. The paper has 30,313 daily paid subscr ...

'', ''

The Press of Atlantic City ''The Press of Atlantic City'' is the fourth-largest daily newspaper in New Jersey. Originally based in Pleasantville, it is the primary newspaper for southeastern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore. The newspaper designated market runs from Ware ...

'', and ''

Asbury Park Press The ''Asbury Park Press'' is a daily newspaper in Monmouth and Ocean counties of New Jersey and has the third largest circulation in the state. It has been owned by Gannett since 1997. Its reporting staff has been awarded numerous national hon ...

''.

U.S House of Representatives

Elections

2000

Kean sought the Republican nomination for New Jersey's 7th congressional district, but lost the primary to Mike Ferguson by about 4,000 votes, finishing second in a field of four candidates.

2020

On April 16, 2019, Kean announced that he was running for New Jersey's 7th congressional district in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, challenging first-term Democratic incumbent Tom Malinowski. In the first quarter of 2019, Kean nearly matched Malinowski's fundraising total of over $500,000. In August 2019, Kean was endorsed by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Kean won the Republican primary over token opposition, and narrowly lost to Malinowski in the general election. It was the closest House race in New Jersey and one of the closest in the country; due to the close margin and slow counting of mail-in and provisional ballots, the outcome remained in doubt until nearly two weeks after the election.

2022

Kean announced in February 2021 that he would not seek reelection to the State Senate and quickly became a top recruit for

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to run for New Jersey's 7th congressional district. Malinowski was under scrutiny after his failure to disclose more than 100 stock trades became a national news story and led to a complaint filed with the House Ethics Committee. David Wasserman, the U.S. House editor of the nonpartisan '' Cook Political Report'', suggested that Democrats could redraw the 7th district as more Republican in exchange for making the 11th district and

5th district District 5, 5 District or 5th District may refer to: Europe * District 5 (Zürich) * District 5, Düsseldorf * V District, Turku * Districts of Malta#District 5, District 5, an electoral district of Malta * Districts of Malta#District 5 2, Distric ...

more solidly Democratic. Kean formally announced his campaign on July 14, 2021, joined by U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. He won the Republican primary in June 2022 and the general election with 51.8% (156,414 votes) to Malinowski's 48.2% (145,253 votes).

Caucus Memberships

* Republican Main Street Partnership

Electoral history

United States House of Representatives

New Jersey Senate

New Jersey Assembly

United States Senate

References

External links

Kean Jr. for Congress
campaign website *
Senator Thomas H. Kean Jr. legislative web page

* ''New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure forms'' *
201520142013201220112010200920082007200620052004

District 21 Candidates website Kean (Senate), Bramnick & Munoz (Assembly)

''

Mother Jones Mary G. Harris Jones (1837 (baptized) – November 30, 1930), known as Mother Jones from 1897 onwards, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent union organizer, community organizer, and activist. She h ...

'' magazine, October 30, 2006. * , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Kean, Thomas Jr. 1968 births 21st-century American politicians Candidates in the 2006 United States elections Candidates in the 2020 United States elections Dartmouth College alumni Thomas Jr. Living people Livingston family Republican Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly Republican Party New Jersey state senators People from Livingston, New Jersey People from Westfield, New Jersey Politicians from Union County, New Jersey Pingry School alumni Schuyler family Winthrop family Psi Upsilon