NJ Decides 2024 congressional voters’ guide
This year, NJ Spotlight News presents a comprehensive look at the races for one New Jersey seat in the U.S. Senate and all 12 House seats. Six candidates are vying for New Jersey’s vacant Senate seat, while 54 seek a spot in the House.
For the NJ Decides 2024 voters’ guide, journalists working under the auspices of the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University sought to collect candidate questionnaires from all those on the ballot for federal office. Additionally, as part of this project, reporters will produce a series of stories about congressional elections across the state and key issues for voters.
This guide seeks to give voters a window into each candidate’s background and platform ahead of the Nov. 5 election. It includes a description of each congressional district and the responses to a questionnaire from candidates running in that district, as well as the candidates for U.S. Senate. All 60 candidates whose names appear on the ballot were asked to fill out the same form and two-thirds responded.
Voters unsure about what district they are in can use the map on the right. Type an address (including “NJ”) into the search box, then click on the result to find the number of the congressional district. Or move the map around and use the zoom controls to find a town and the district in which it is located.
To find more information about a district, including the candidates running and where they stand on key issues click on the box below, then choose the district to go to the page that includes information about the race and the candidates.
The questionnaire asked each candidate’s age, hometown, occupation, party affiliation and for a link to the campaign’s website, where voters may find more information.
In addition, the questionnaire posed the following more detailed questions, to which candidates were asked to give concise answers:
Please tell us about your personal background, including hometown, education, work experience, etc.
Please tell us about your political background.
Why are you running for office?
What is a key issue for you in this election?
What role should the federal government play in regulating women’s reproductive health, including birth control, abortion and IVF?
What specific steps should the federal government take to transition the country to clean energy?
What more, if anything, needs to be done to ensure free and fair elections and a smooth transition of power?
What should be the United States’ role, including the provision of aid and other support, in foreign conflicts like those in Ukraine and Israel/Gaza?