Tom Kean | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2022 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 7th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Tom Malinowski |
| Minority Leader of the New Jersey Senate | |
| In office January 8, 2008 – January 11, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Leonard Lance |
| Succeeded by | Steve Oroho |
| Member of the New Jersey Senate from the 21st district | |
| In office March 1, 2003 – January 11, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Rich Bagger |
| Succeeded by | Jon Bramnick |
| Member of the New Jersey General Assembly | |
| In office April 19, 2001 – March 1, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Alan Augustine |
| Succeeded by | Jon Bramnick |
| Constituency | 22nd district (2001–2002) 21st district (2002–2003) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 5, 1968 |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Rhonda Kean |
| Children | 2 |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Robert Kean (grandfather) Leslie Kean (cousin) |
| Education | Dartmouth College (BA) Tufts University (MA) |
| Website | House website |
Thomas Howard Kean Jr. (/ˈkeɪn/ KAYN;[1] born September 5, 1968)[2] is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from New Jersey's 7th congressional district since 2023. He represented New Jersey's 21st legislative district in the New Jersey Senate from 2003 to 2022, serving as minority leader from 2008 to 2022.
From 2001 to 2003, Kean was a member of the New Jersey General Assembly. In 2003, he was elected a New Jersey state senator representing the same district, and in January 2008 he became minority leader of the New Jersey Senate, serving in the position until his term ended in January 2022.[3]After Governor Chris Christie was reelected in 2013, Christie tried and failed to remove him as minority leader.[4] He was frequently mentioned as a potential Republican candidate for governor in the 2017 New Jersey gubernatorial election, but did not seek the nomination.[5]
Kean was the Republican nominee for New Jersey's 7th congressional district in 2020, narrowly losing the general election to incumbent Democrat Tom Malinowski. He defeated Malinowski in a 2022 rematch. Kean would defeat former New Jersey Working Families Party director Sue Altman during his re-election bid in 2024.
- ^ Felzenberg, Alvin S. (2006). Governor Tom Kean. Rutgers University Press. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-8135-3799-3.
From the time James Kean arrived in South Carolina, the Keans took pains to retain the proper pronunciation of their name, which rhymes with rain rather than with green.
- ^ "KEAN, Thomas 1968 –". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
- ^ Wildstein, David. "County chairs back Bramnick, Assembly incumbents for re-election", New jersey Globe, November 15, 2022. Accessed January 6, 2023. "Bramnick, a former minority leader of the New Jersey State Assembly, won a State Senate seat in 2021 after Tom Kean, Jr., now a congressman-elect, declined to seek re-election in order to focus on his challenge to Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-Ringoes)."
- ^ Isherwood, Darryl (November 8, 2013). "Democrats continue to savage Kean". NJ.com. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
- ^ Lizza, Ryan (April 14, 2014). "Crossing Christie". New Yorker. Retrieved April 20, 2014.