Jeff Van Drew | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew Jersey's2nd district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Frank LoBiondo |
| Member of theNew Jersey Senate from the1st district | |
| In office January 8, 2008 – December 31, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Nicholas Asselta |
| Succeeded by | Bob Andrzejczak |
| Member of theNew Jersey General Assembly from the1st district | |
| In office January 8, 2002 – January 8, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | John C. Gibson |
| Succeeded by | Matthew W. Milam |
| Member of theCape May CountyBoard of Chosen Freeholders | |
| In office January 1, 2001 – January 8, 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Videtto |
| Succeeded by | Leonard Desiderio |
| In office January 1, 1995 – January 1, 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Gary Jessel |
| Succeeded by | Mark Videtto |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jefferson Van Drew (1953-02-23)February 23, 1953 (age 72) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic (before 2020) Republican (2020–present) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Rutgers University–New Brunswick (BS) Fairleigh Dickinson University (DMD) |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
Jefferson H. Van Drew[1] (born February 23, 1953)[2] is an American politician serving as theU.S. representative forNew Jersey's 2nd congressional district since 2019. He was elected as aDemocrat but joined theRepublican Party in 2020.
Before being elected to Congress, Van Drew held several public offices, including fire commissioner, town committee member, Mayor ofDennis Township, New Jersey, andCape May CountyFreeholder. He representedNew Jersey's 1st legislative district in theNew Jersey General Assembly from 2002 to 2008, and represented the same district in theNew Jersey Senate from 2008 to 2018.
Van Drew was the Democratic nominee inNew Jersey's 2nd congressional district in the2018 election. He was elected with 52.9% of the vote to Republican Seth Grossman's 45.2%. After opposing thefirst impeachment of Donald Trump, Van Drew joined the Republican Party shortly afterward. He was reelected in2020, defeating Democratic challengerAmy Kennedy. Van Drew later supported theunsuccessful attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election.
Van Drew was born in New York City. He graduated with aB.S. fromRutgers University and received aD.M.D. degree fromFairleigh Dickinson University.[3]
Van Drew operated a dental practice inSouth Jersey for 30 years before retiring.[4]
Van Drew served on theDennis Township Committee in 1991, and as mayor from 1994 to 1995 and from 1997 to 2003. He served on theCape May CountyBoard of Chosen Freeholders from 1994 to 1997 and from 2000 to 2002.[5][6][7][8] He was a Dennis Township Fire Commissioner from 1983 to 1986.[3]
In 1994, as a Cape May County Freeholder, Van Drew made support for a local community college a major campaign issue. In 2002, ground was broken on the site of the futureAtlantic Cape Community College campus in Cape May County.[9]
Van Drew was a member of the Democratic Party while a local officeholder.[10]
Van Drew represented the1st Legislative District in theNew Jersey General Assembly from 2002 to 2008. He represented the same district in theNew Jersey Senate from 2008 to 2018.[11][3] He was a Democrat during this period.[10]
On November 6, 2007, Van Drew was elected to the New Jersey Senate, defeatingRepublican incumbentNicholas Asselta.[12] In November 2011, Van Drew defeated Republican challenger David S. DeWeese, 24,557 votes to 20,857.[13] He was reelected in 2013, defeatingUpper Township Republican businesswoman Susan Adelizzi Schmidt by 20 points.[14]
For the 2018–19 session, Van Drew served in the Senate on the Community and Urban Affairs Committee (as chair), the Military and Veterans' Affairs (as vice chair), the Joint Committee on Housing Affordability and the Intergovernmental Relations Commission.[3] In 2008, he sponsored the Fair Market Drug Pricing Act to establish the "New Jersey Rx Card Program to reduce prescription drug prices."[15]
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New Jersey's 2nd congressional district had been represented by RepublicanFrank LoBiondo since 1995, who served 11 terms before announcing his retirement on November 7, 2017. The district is the southernmost in New Jersey and the state's largest by area, encompassing rural farms fromSalem County to theJersey Shore andAtlantic City. PresidentBarack Obama won the district in 2008 and 2012, and PresidentDonald Trump won in 2016. Upon LoBiondo's retirement announcement,The Cook Political Report changed the district's rating in the2018 midterms from "Safe Republican" to "Toss-Up".[16][17][18]
On November 29, 2017, Van Drew announced he would run for the open seat, aiming "to bring economic opportunity and good jobs to South Jersey."[19] Eight county chairs in the district endorsed him, as did New Jersey Democratic leaderGeorge Norcross.[18] In February 2018, theDemocratic Congressional Campaign Committee included Van Drew in its Red to Blue program, which provided resources and donors to candidates in districts that were targeted to be flipped from Republican to Democratic.[20] In the June 5 primary, Van Drew faced William Cunningham, Tanzie Youngblood,[16] and Nate Kleinman.[21] Sean Thom dropped out ahead of the primary.[22] As of May 16, Van Drew had raised $412,555 for his campaign.[23] Van Drew won the primary with 55.4% of the vote. The same night, formerAtlantic County FreeholderSeth Grossman won the Republican nomination.[24]
After Van Drew's primary win,The Cook Political Report andSabato's Crystal Ball changed the district's rating to "Likely Democratic".[25][26] In theNovember 6 general election, Van Drew defeated Grossman, 52.9%-45.2%.[27] His district was one of four New Jersey congressional districts to flip from Republican to Democratic in 2018.[28]
In late November 2019, Van Drew vowed that he would remain a Democrat even though he opposed Trump's impeachment.[29] In December 2019, it was reported that Van Drew was considering switching to theRepublican Party for the 2020 elections,[30][31][32] after internal polling showed his stance against Trump's impeachment imperiled him with Democratic voters in his district.[33] After a private meeting between Van Drew and Trump,[34] most of his senior aides resigned in protest.[35][36] The planned conversion was met with praise and criticism by members of both parties.[37][38] After reports that he was planning to switch parties, theBlue Dog Coalition, a caucus of fiscally conservative Democrats, dropped him from their ranks.[39]The Cook Political Report changed the rating for the district from "Toss-up" to "Leans Republican" on December 16.[40] On December 19, Van Drew announced that he would join the Republican Party.
Van Drew hired former Trump administration political directorBill Stepien as a campaign adviser.[41] Van Drew officially switched his party affiliation on January 7, 2020.[42] On January 28, Trump held a rally for Van Drew at theWildwoods Convention Center, joined by Van Drew, State SenatorsChris Brown andMike Testa, and White House counselorKellyanne Conway.[43]
After the primary, Van Drew became the Republican nominee and faced Democratic nomineeAmy Kennedy.[44] In August 2020, the Cook Political Report rated the congressional race a "toss up". On August 27, Van Drew spoke at the2020 Republican National Convention, discussing his discomfort in his relationship with his former Democratic colleagues in the House and why he supported Trump's reelection.[45] Van Drew defeated Kennedy in the general election, 52% to 46%, or by about 20,000 votes.[46]
Van Drew ran for reelection in the2022 elections.[47] He won the primary with 82% of the vote, defeating two challengers for the Republican nomination.[48] He won the general election with 59.3% of the vote to Democratic nominee Tim Alexander's 39.6%.[49]
On December 8, 2023, Van Drew announced his intention to run for re-election in the2024 elections.[50] He was unopposed in the Republican primary and won the general election with 58.1% of the votes.[51]
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Van Drew was the first Democrat to represent the district since 1995.[28]
Van Drew said during his campaign that, if elected, he would not supportNancy Pelosi to be the nextSpeaker of the House.[52][53] His first vote in Congress was "no" for Speaker which was recorded as "present" under the rules.[54]
In October 2019, he announced that he would oppose theimpeachment inquiry against Donald Trump.[55] On October 31, 2019, he andCollin Peterson were the only Democrats to vote against the rules for an impeachment inquiry against Trump.[56][57] He was also one of two Democrats to vote against both articles of impeachment on December 18, 2019, along with Peterson,[58] although it had already been leaked before the vote that he was planning to switch parties.[59]
Before switching parties, Van Drew voted in line with Democrats 89.7% of the time during his tenure in Congress.[60]
On December 19, 2019, Van Drew publicly announced his decision to join the Republican Party, telling Trump that he had his "undying support." As a result, Trump endorsed him for reelection.[61][62] Van Drew officially switched his party affiliation on January 7, 2020.[42]
In December 2020, Van Drew was one of 126 Republican members of theHouse of Representatives to sign anamicus brief in support ofTexas v. Pennsylvania,[63] a lawsuit filed at theUnited States Supreme Court contesting the results of the2020 presidential election, in whichJoe Biden defeated Trump, though the filing erroneously placed Van Drew as representing a district in South Carolina.[64] On January 6, 2021, Van Drew was one of 147 Republican lawmakers who objected to thecertification of electoral votes in the 2020 presidential election after Trump supportersstormed the U.S. Capitol and forced an emergency recess of Congress.[65] Van Drew says he received adeath threat from a journalist because of the objection.[66]
On February 4, 2021, Van Drew voted against removingMarjorie Taylor Greene from her positions on theHouse Budget and theEducation and Labor committees over comments she had made and conspiracy theories she had espoused.[67]
In May 2021, Van Drew joined a majority of Republicans who voted to oustLiz Cheney from House Republican leadership, saying, "she is not providing the leadership that would create unity within our caucus and it's very important as we go into the next election, it's very important as we deal with policy issues, that we are unified and we are strong, and I don't think that brand and style of leadership that she used was creating that but rather was splitting people apart."[68]
On November 5, 2021, Van Drew and 12 other House Republicans broke with their party to vote with a majority of Democrats for theInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.[69]
On May 22, 2025, Van Drew voted for the RepublicanOne Big Beautiful Bill Act that significantly cutMedicaid, despite previously signing a letter opposing such reductions. The legislation included an expansion of Section 199A, a tax provision set to expire at the end of the year, which could personally benefit Van Drew, who reported over $5,000 in pass-through rental income. The deduction is estimated to cost $730 billion over the next decade, with proposed changes adding an additional $50 billion.[70]
Van Drew opposesfederal preemption of state and local agricultural laws, including laws related to farmanimal welfare. In October 2023, Van Drew was one of 16 House Republicans to sign a letter to theHouse Agriculture Committee opposing the inclusion of the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act in the 2023farm bill, which would have invalidatedCalifornia's Proposition 12 and other state laws prohibiting the sale of animal products raised inbattery cages,gestation crates, andveal crates.[71] In March 2024, Van Drew signed another House Republican letter opposing the EATS Act, claiming that it would result in foreign-owned agribusiness companies such as the Chinese-ownedWH Group gaining influence over the U.S. agricultural sector.[72][73]
Van Drew helped found and co-chaired the Offshore Wind Caucus in Congress.[74] However, in 2024, Van Drew left the caucus.[74] Over the years, he had become a vocal critic of offshore wind.[74] Van Drew argued that offshore wind kills whales.[74] In 2025, Van Drew collaborated with President Donald Trump to freeze offshore wind energy projects in the United States.[75]
In September 2021, Van Drew was among 135 House Republicans to vote for theNational Defense Authorization Act of 2022, which contains a provision that would require women to register for thedraft.[76][77]
In July 2021, Van Drew voted for the bipartisanALLIES Act, which would increase by 8,000 the number ofspecial immigrant visas for Afghan allies of the U.S. military duringits invasion of Afghanistan, while also reducing some application requirements that caused long application backlogs; the bill passed the House, 407–16.[78][79]
Van Drew voted against H.R. 7691, the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022, which would provide $40 billion in emergency aid to the Ukrainian government.[80]
Van Drew was one of 18 Republicans to vote againstSweden andFinland joiningNATO.[81]
In 2021, Van Drew co-sponsored the Fairness for All Act, the Republican alternative to the Equality Act.[82] The bill would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity, and protect the free exercise of religion.
In 2021, Van Drew was one of 29 Republicans to vote to reauthorize theViolence Against Women Act.[83] The bill expanded legal protections for transgender people, and contained provisions allowing transgender women to use women's shelters and serve time in prisons matching their gender identity.[84]
Van Drew was one of 31 Republicans to vote for the LGBTQ Business Equal Credit Enforcement and Investment Act.[85]
On July 19, 2022, Van Drew and 46 other Republican representatives voted for theRespect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.[86] On December 8, 2022, he voted against the final passage of the Respect for Marriage Act as amended by the US Senate.[87][88]
In 2023, Van Drew sponsored H.R.216, the My Child, My Choice Act,[89] which would revoke federal education funding for schools that do not require teachers to obtain written parental consent before teaching lessons specifically related to gender identity, sexual orientation, or transgender studies, and for other purposes.
Van Drew was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of theFiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[90]
In the118th Congress he co-sponsored a pair of resolutions meant to expunge theimpeachments of Donald Trump.[91] In the119th United States Congress, he again co-sponsored resolutions to expunge Trump's impeachments.[92]
For the119th Congress:[93]
In his run for State Senate in 2007, Van Drew remarked, "I'm proud to be a Democrat because to me it always represented working people, middle-class people and issues of compassion." He represented Republican-leaning Cape May County in the assembly, and accordingly took politically moderate positions.[97] He was one of the most conservative Democrats in the state senate.[98] As of January 2021,FiveThirtyEight, which tracks congressional votes, reports that Van Drew voted with Trump 27.5% of the time.[99] During the 116th Congress he voted with Trump's position 25% of the time and in the 117th Congress, he voted with Trump's position 100% of the time.[100] As of November 2022, he had voted with Biden's position in Congress 24% of the time.[101]
During his congressional primary campaign, Van Drew had a 100% rating from theNational Rifle Association of America (NRA).[102] In 2007 and 2008, he received $2,700 from theNational Shooting Sports Foundation, and in 2008, he received $1,000 from the NRA.[103] In 2010, Van Drew sponsored legislation that would allowresidents to carry a handgun after going through a background check, taking a firearms training course, passing a test, and paying a $500 fee.[104] In 2013, he was the only Democrat to vote against a series of ten gun control bills after theSandy Hook Elementary School shooting.[105] Van Drew also voiced support for expanded background checks and the regulation forsilencers. Despite his pro-gun stance, the gun-control groupMoms Demand Action designated Van Drew a "Gun Sense Candidate".[103]
In 2012, while serving in the State Senate, Van Drew was one of two Democrats to vote against a bill tolegalize same-sex marriage in New Jersey.[106] During his 2013 reelection campaign, the socially conservative nonprofit group New Jersey Family First sent out flyers stating that Van Drew "supports traditional marriage and letting the people vote on the definition of marriage", while his Republican opponent Susan Adelizzi Schmidt was supportive of same-sex marriage.[107] In 2022, Van Drew initially voted for the passage of theRespect for Marriage Act; however, he later reversed that position and voted against the final passage of the Respect for Marriage Act as amended by the US Senate.[88]
Also in 2012, Van Drew was the only Democrat to vote against raising the stateminimum wage above the federal minimum wage of $7.25.[108] On his campaign website, he highlighted his support for fully funding theChildren's Health Insurance Program and protectingnet neutrality. Van Drew also supported a state constitutional amendment requiring parental approval for abortions, which he later withdrew. As state senator, he also withdrew sponsorship of a bill to reinstate thedeath penalty in the state, which he had favored while serving as a state assemblyman.[109]
Van Drew opposesoffshore drilling on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, he joinedRepublicanJohn Rutherford to introduce the Atlantic Coastal Economies Protection Act, which would prohibitseismic air gun testing in theAtlantic Ocean.[110] Van Drew previously voted to withdraw fromRegional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and supported the construction of apipeline through thePinelands.[111]
In 2020, Van Drew said that he waspro-choice but opposedlate-term abortions,[112] and in 2018, he expressed his support forRoe v. Wade (the landmark decision that legalized abortion nationwide), saying, "any efforts to weaken or undermine [abortion rights] will face my fierce opposition."[113][114] In 2022, Van Drew criticized those responsible for leaking Justice Samuel Alito'sDobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization draft opinion, saying, "This is a clear effort to inflict public backlash of a Supreme Court decision to intimidate the justices to reverse their position".[115] After the Supreme Court overturnedRoe, his office issued a press release saying that Van Drew supports the overturning ofRoe and letting the states set abortion law.[116][117][118] In a 2022 debate, he said, "Personally I am pro-life."[119]
In 2024, amidst the2024 New Jersey drone sightings, Van Drew claimed that Iran had launched a drone mothership that was off the coast of New Jersey.[120][121]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 215,946 | 58.1 | |
| Democratic | Joe Salerno | 153,117 | 41.2 | |
| Green | Thomas Cannavo | 2,557 | 0.7 | |
| Total votes | 371,620 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 139,217 | 58.9 | |
| Democratic | Tim Alexander | 94,522 | 40.0 | |
| Total votes | 236,484 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 195,526 | 51.9 | |
| Democratic | Amy Kennedy | 173,849 | 46.2 | |
| Total votes | 376,547 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 45,226 | 82.4 | |
| Republican | Bob Patterson | 9,691 | 17.6 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew | 125,755 | 52.9% | |||
| Republican | Seth Grossman | 110,491 | 45.2% | |||
| Libertarian | John Ordille | 1,631 | 0.6% | |||
| Independent | Steven Fencihel | 1,046 | 0.4% | |||
| Independent | Anthony Parisi Sanchez | 964 | 0.4% | |||
| Independent | William R. Benfer | 816 | 0.4% | |||
| Total votes | 240,703 | 100.00 | ||||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew | 15,654 | 55.4 | |
| Democratic | Tanzira "Tanzie" Youngblood | 5,417 | 19.2 | |
| Democratic | William Cunningham | 4,739 | 16.8 | |
| Democratic | Nate Kleinman | 2,443 | 8.6 | |
| Total votes | 28,253 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 35,464 | 64.8% | |
| Republican | Mary Gruccio | 18,589 | 34.0% | |
| Independent | Anthony Parisi Sanchez | 652 | 1.2% | |
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 34,624 | 59.4% | |
| Republican | Susan Adelizzi Schmidt | 22,835 | 39.2% | |
| Independent | Tom Greto | 825 | 1.4% | |
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew (incumbent) | 24,557 | 54.0 | |
| Republican | David S. DeWeese | 20,857 | 45.9 | |
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jeff Van Drew | 28,240 | 55.7 | |||
| Republican | Nicholas Asselta (incumbent) | 22,469 | 44.3 | |||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | ||||||
Van Drew and his wife, Ricarda, have two children.[127] He is a resident ofDennis Township.[128] Van Drew has served as president of the New Jersey Dental Society and a board expert of the New Jersey Board of Dentistry.[129]
Van Drew is aFreemason[130] at Cannon Lodge No. 104 inSouth Seaville, New Jersey.[131] Van Drew identifies his religion as being aRoman Catholic.[132]
A dizzying week in which New Jersey Democratic Rep. Jeff Van Drew prepared to defect to the Republican Party was the inevitable result of a clumsy approach to the politics of impeachment.
As news spread of the New Jersey congressman's apparent decision, most of the staff in his Washington office quit.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Trump had persuaded a group of 18 other Republican state attorneys general and 126 Republican members of Congress to sign on to arguments that would have reversed the will of voters in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin.... The filing from GOP lawmakers placed Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey from South Carolina instead.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew Jersey's 2nd congressional district 2019–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by | United States representatives by seniority 238th | Succeeded by |
| People | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
