NJ Republican Jeff Van Drew beats Dem challenger in race for House seat

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Republican incumbent Jeff Van Drew has won reelection in New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District. 

In a tight race against Democratic challenger Amy Kennedy, Van Drew defeated his opponent by almost 15,400 votes.

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According to the Fox News Decision Desk, Van Drew clinched 159,376 votes to Kennedy's 144,005 — or 51% to 46% respectively. 

Eighty percent of the votes have been reported. The vote totals do not include provisional ballots, but Van Drew was enough in the lead that the Associated Press called the race for him, as well. 

Van Drew, a retired dentist, declared victory Tuesday at a campaign gathering in Sea Isle City, The Press of Atlantic City reported.

Kennedy ‒ a former school teacher and wife of former Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy ‒ had to leave the campaign trail on Monday to self-quarantine because she had been in close proximity to someone who tested positive for COVID-19.

Her loss marks the end of the Kennedy political dynasty's 60-year run in Congress, according to Town and Country magazine.

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“We deserve a leader who will fight for better-paying jobs, for the protections our workers need, for relief for small businesses and better health care," Kennedy said Tuesday in a Facebook Live broadcast, hours after the polls closed. "I’m hopeful that South Jersey will get the representation it deserves. Thank you all, and we move on.”

The race gained national attention after Van Drew’s widely publicized defection from the Democratic party to the Republican Party in December 2019, when he pledged his “undying support to President Trump during a meeting at the White House.

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The move, which earned him the nickname “Switcheroo Van Drew,” came after Van Drew and two other lawmakers split with his former party on impeaching President Trump. 

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Before Van Drew’s first win as a Democrat in 2018, Republicans had held the congressional seat more than two decades, according to CBS News Philadelphia.

The Garden State's second congressional district was a bright spot for President Trump in 2016, where he won by more than 10,000 votes.