WEST ORANGE, NJ — For the past several months, there has been a lot of conjecture regarding who would be running to represent the 11th District in Congress. Many have been pointing to Assemblyman John McKeon, a Democrat who represents the N.J. 27th Legislative District, believing that he will challenge incumbent Rodney Frelinghuysen, a Republican. Nevertheless McKeon recently announced that he will not be running for Congress, despite giving the issue considerable thought.
“It has been the privilege of my professional life to serve as a councilman, mayor and member of the General Assembly representing the town I grew up and raised my family in,” McKeon said of West Orange in an Aug. 8 statement released from his office. “If the voters choose to return me to the Legislature this November, I will have the honor of serving as a senior member of the Assembly. With a Democratic governor in Trenton, I hope to be an integral part of the solution as New Jersey faces some of its most challenging times. Therefore, at this time I have decided to not run for Congress next year. My heartfelt appreciation goes to my family, friends, party leaders, longtime supporters, the DCCC and the members of Congress who encouraged and helped me with this process.
“Now, more than ever, we need a strong Democratic standard bearer to represent our values in the 2018 Congressional race,” McKeon continued. “There are many who formally and informally have expressed a willingness to take up that mantle here in the 11th and I am convinced that any one of them would do so with honor and distinction, and ultimately be successful.
“No matter what, I will continue to speak out and challenge Rep. Frelinghuysen on issues that impact New Jersey and our nation.”
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