Party-switching congressman, challenger to meet in TV debate

GALLOWAY, N.J. (AP) — The only New Jersey congressman to host President Donald Trump in his district for a rally this year before the COVID-19 outbreak hit is taking on his Democratic challenger in a televised debate Thursday.

Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew and Democrat Amy Kennedy will square off at Stockton University's Hughes Center for Public Policy in a debate televised by NJTV.

Van Drew is running for a second term, but this time as a Republican. He was elected in 2018 but switched parties because he opposed impeachment of Trump. His embrace of the GOP led to an Oval Office meeting with the president, during which he pledged his “undying support.”

The president thanked Van Drew with a rally in Wildwood, and later a prime time speaking role at the Republican National Convention.

Kennedy is seeking office for the first time. She's a former public school teacher and the spouse of former Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy.

Polls have shown Kennedy with a slight lead in the swing district. Trump carried the district in 2016, though Van Drew won as a Democrat two years later. Before his victory, Republicans had held the congressional seat for over two decades.

The 2nd District covers much of southern New Jersey and includes parts or all of Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Ocean and Salem counties.

Kennedy has run ads on Philadelphia market TV focusing on her biography and as well as health care arguing in favor of protecting coverage for pre-existing illnesses.

Van Drew has been airing radio ads recently, but also had a video spot that featured Trump endorsing him. Van Drew is a dentist and longtime former state lawmaker. He served as a conservative-leaning Democrat in the state Senate until he won the House seat two years ago.