In NJ's most crowded Democratic primary, liberals fight to own the progressive vote

Adam Hamawy campaigned in Trenton’s Mill Hill district by ringing a doorbell and speaking with a resident who said he would look at a pamphlet. New Jersey voters are heading to the polls in primary races ahead of November’s midterm elections, with the 12th Congressional District drawing the most crowded attention. Thirteen Democrats are running to replace retiring Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman, who previously won with more than 63% of the vote. Three leading fundraisers have emerged: Hamawy raised over half a million dollars in the first quarter of 2026, Brad Cohen raised just over $400,000, and Sue Altman raised about $406,000. The key question is how far left Democratic voters will go in selecting the nominee.

"No one opened the door when Adam Hamawy rang the bell of a Trenton row house while campaigning for Congress in the city's historic Mill Hill district. Instead, a young man opened a third-floor window and poked his head out. "Have you voted yet? Or are you going to vote soon?" Hamawy shouted up into the May afternoon sunshine. The man replied with a no. "The election is on June 2. And I'm running so that we are funding healthcare, not bombs. We all want healthcare, right?" asked Hamawy, a surgeon by trade. The man agreed. "So will you vote for me?" Hamawy asked. The man said he would look at the pamphlet stuck in his front door."

"New Jerseyans head to the polls in less than two weeks in a host of high-stakes primary races for Democrats ahead of November's midterm elections. But none are more crowded than the state's sprawling 12th Congressional District, which leans heavily blue and encompasses urban locales like Trenton, wealthy suburbs like Princeton and working-class towns like Manville. Thirteen candidates are running for the Democratic nomination to replace Bonnie Watson Coleman, who is retiring after holding the seat for the past 11 years. She won her last two congressional elections with more than 63% of the vote."

"But three top fundraisers have emerged from the field, said Matt Hale, a political professor at Seton Hall University. In the first quarter of 2026, Hamawy brought in over half a million dollars, well more than any other candidate. East Brunswick Mayor Brad Cohen was second with just over $400,000, and former head of the New Jersey Working Families Party Sue Altman was a close third with $406,000. It's unclear how much additional money candidates have raised in the past two months. The question now, Hale said, is how far left Democratic voters are willing to go when choosing their nominee."

Read at Gothamist