Tom Malinowski (NJ-07) was the big loser in redistricting. His district went from D+2 to R+1 and is now rated Lean R by Cook. Malinowski’s ability to raise funds (more than $2.58 M thus far) and his moderate stance work in his favor, and there is a good chance he can hold the seat. He faces a formidable opponent, in Tom Kean, who comes from a long-running political family, and whose father is the former governor of New Jersey.
The Dobbs decision, however, could tilt the race further in Malinoski’s favor. He is pro-choice, and his opponent is not – and Malinowski is currently running ads saying so.
HIS BACKGROUND
Rep. Malinowski was born in Communist Poland at the height of the Cold War, where he lived with his mother until he was 6 years old. One of his earliest memories is of his mom paying off a corrupt official to get the passports that would allow them to come to America. As young as he was, he understood he was living in a place where some people had all the power and could do whatever they pleased to people who had none. That’s a feeling he’s never forgotten and it has guided his public service.
Rep. Malinowski grew up in Central Jersey, going to public schools, playing baseball, and hoping that someday he could give something back to the country that gave him his freedom. He got that chance while serving President Clinton on his National Security Council, working to end some of the 20th Century’s bloodiest humanitarian crises, as the chief advocate for Human Rights Watch, leading a bipartisan effort to end the Bush Administration’s use of torture, as well as an Assistant Secretary of State under President Obama, standing up to dictators like Putin and Kim Jong-Un.
A vocal opponent of Donald Trump, Malinowski was first elected in 2018, defeating Republican incumbent Leonard Lance by 5 points. He was reelected in 2020 by a narrower margin against New Jersey State Senate Minority Leader Thomas Kean Jr. This cycle will see a re-match against Kean.
ON THE ISSUES
Rep. Malinowski is making safe abortion access a centerpiece of his campaign. He has said, “I do not believe that women and doctors should be treated like criminals for making what are often incredibly difficult and painful decisions about pregnancies and their health care. I co-sponsored the House-passed Women’s Health Protection Act, which would enshrine Roe v. Wade into the law of our land once and for all.”
Rep. Malinowski strongly supported the bipartisan gun violence prevention bill that strengthened background checks for young gun buyers and closed the so-called “boyfriend loophole” while increasing funding for mental health. He believes we should take additional steps, including requiring violent history checks for every gun sale, a reasonable waiting period, restoring the previous ban on military-style assault weapons or at least increasing the age of purchase to 21, and requiring safe storage of a firearm in homes with a child or person with a mental illness.
Rep. Malinowski believes America is already paying tens of billions of dollars a year to fix the damage caused by a warming climate. He says that climate rescue is possible and urgently needed. We have the technology and ingenuity to do it. He has said, “I want America, not China or any other country, to lead the world to a clean energy future, and I want New Jersey to lead America.”
