New Jersey's 12th congressional district

New Jersey's 12th congressional district is represented by Democrat Bonnie Watson Coleman, who has served in Congress since 2015. The district is known for its research centers and educational institutions such as Princeton University, Rider University, The College of New Jersey, Institute for Advanced Study, Johnson & Johnson and Bristol-Myers Squibb. The district is primarily suburban in character, covering portions of Mercer, Somerset, Union, and Middlesex counties, although the district contains the state capital of Trenton as well as the smaller city of Plainfield.

"NJ-12" redirects here. The term may also refer to New Jersey Route 12.
New Jersey's 12th congressional district
Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023
Representative
  Bonnie Watson Coleman
D–Ewing Township
Distribution
  • 97.6% urban
  • 2.4% rural
Population (2022)767,218
Median household
income		$109,146[1]
Ethnicity
Cook PVID+12[2]

History

The 12th congressional district (together with the 11th district) was created starting with the 63rd United States Congress in 1913, based on redistricting following the United States Census, 1910. Historically, the 12th and its predecessors had been a swing district. However, redistricting following the 2000 United States Census gave the district a somewhat bluer hue than its predecessor. It absorbed most of Trenton, along with a number of other municipalities. Since then, the 12th has become a Democratic-leaning district, as measured by the Cook PVI.[3]

The redistricting made second-term Democrat Rush D. Holt Jr. considerably more secure; he had narrowly defeated freshman Republican Michael Pappas in 1998, and had only held on to his seat against Dick Zimmer who represented the district from 1991 to 1997, by 651 votes in 2000. In 2002, despite an expensive challenge from former New Jersey Secretary of State Buster Soaries, Holt was re-elected with 61% of the vote.

The district became even more Democratic after redistricting following the 2010 census, as it lost its share of Republican-leaning Hunterdon County and Monmouth County, while being pushed further into strongly Democratic Middlesex County and gaining the overwhelmingly Democratic Union County town of Plainfield, as well as the portion of Trenton that it had not absorbed in the previous redistricting. Holt retired in 2014 and was succeeded by State Assembly Majority Leader Bonnie Watson Coleman, making her the first African-American woman elected to Congress from New Jersey.

Counties and municipalities in the district

For the 118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2020 Census), the district contains all or portions of four counties and 32 municipalities.[4]

Mercer County (7)

Ewing Township, Hopewell Borough, Hopewell Township, Pennington, Princeton, Trenton and West Windsor Township

Middlesex County (14)

Cranbury Township, Dunellen, East Brunswick Township, Helmetta, Jamesburg, Middlesex, Milltown, Monroe Township, North Brunswick Township, Old Bridge Township (part, also 6th), Plainsboro Township, South Brunswick Township, South River Borough, and Spotswood Borough

Somerset County (10)

Bound Brook, Bridgewater (part, also in 7th), Hillsborough (part, also in 7th), Franklin Township, Manville, Millstone, Montgomery, North Plainfield, Rocky Hill, and South Bound Brook

Union County (1)

Plainfield

Recent statewide election results
Year Office Results
2000 President Gore 56 - 40%
2004 President Kerry 54 - 46%
2008 President Obama 58 - 41%
2012 President Obama 66.5 - 32%
2016 President Clinton 65 - 32%
2017 Governor Murphy 62.9% - 35.2%
2020 President Biden 67 - 31%
2020 Senate Booker 66.3% - 31.9%
2021 Governor Murphy 62.3% - 36.8%

List of members representing the district
Member
(District Home)		 Party Years Cong
ress		 Electoral history Counties/Towns
District established March 4, 1913

James A. Hamill
(Jersey City)		 Democratic March 4, 1913 –
March 3, 1921		 63rd
64th
65th
66th		 Redistricted from the 10th district and re-elected in 1912.
Re-elected in 1914.
Re-elected in 1916.
Re-elected in 1918.
Retired.		 1913–1933
Parts of Jersey City

Charles F. X. O'Brien
(Jersey City)		 Democratic March 4, 1921 –
March 3, 1925		 67th
68th		 Elected in 1920.
Re-elected in 1922.
Retired to become registrar of records of Hudson County.

Mary Teresa Norton
(Jersey City)		 Democratic March 4, 1925 –
March 3, 1933		 69th
70th
71st
72nd		 Elected in 1924.
Re-elected in 1926.
Re-elected in 1928.
Re-elected in 1930.
Redistricted to the 13th district.

Frederick R. Lehlbach
(Newark)		 Republican March 4, 1933 –
January 3, 1937		 73rd
74th		 Redistricted from the 10th district and re-elected in 1932.
Re-elected in 1934.
Lost re-election.		 1933–1967
Parts of Essex

Frank William Towey Jr.
(Caldwell)		 Democratic January 3, 1937 –
January 3, 1939		 75th Elected in 1936.
Lost re-election.

Robert Kean
(Livingston)		 Republican January 3, 1939 –
January 3, 1959		 76th
77th
78th
79th
80th
81st
82nd
83rd
84th
85th		 Elected in 1938.
Re-elected in 1940.
Re-elected in 1942.
Re-elected in 1944.
Re-elected in 1946.
Re-elected in 1948.
Re-elected in 1950.
Re-elected in 1952.
Re-elected in 1954.
Re-elected in 1956.
Retired to run for U.S. senator.

George M. Wallhauser
(Maplewood)		 Republican January 3, 1959 –
January 3, 1965		 86th
87th
88th		 Elected in 1958.
Re-elected in 1960.
Re-elected in 1962.
Retired.

Paul J. Krebs
(Livingston)		 Democratic January 3, 1965 –
January 3, 1967		 89th Elected in 1964.
Retired.

Florence P. Dwyer
(Elizabeth)		 Republican January 3, 1967 –
January 3, 1973		 90th
91st
92nd		 Redistricted from the 6th district and re-elected in 1966.
Re-elected in 1968.
Re-elected in 1970.
Retired.		 1967–1973
Parts of Essex and Union

Matthew John Rinaldo
(Union Township)		 Republican January 3, 1973 –
January 3, 1983		 93rd
94th
95th
96th
97th		 Elected in 1972.
Re-elected in 1974.
Re-elected in 1976.
Re-elected in 1978.
Re-elected in 1980.
Redistricted to the 7th district.		 1973–1983
Parts of Union

Jim Courter
(Hackettstown)		 Republican January 3, 1983 –
January 3, 1991		 98th
99th
100th
101st		 Redistricted from the 13th district and re-elected in 1982.
Re-elected in 1984.
Re-elected in 1986.
Re-elected in 1988.
Retired.		 1983–1985
Parts of Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren
1985–1993
Hunterdon and parts of Mercer (Princeton and West Windsor),
Middlesex, Morris, Somerset, Sussex, and Warren

Dick Zimmer
(Delaware)		 Republican January 3, 1991 –
January 3, 1997		 102nd
103rd
104th		 Elected in 1990.
Re-elected in 1992.
Re-elected in 1994.
Retired to run for U.S. senator.
1993–2003
Parts of Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, and Somerset

Michael James Pappas
(Rocky Hill)		 Republican January 3, 1997 –
January 3, 1999		 105th Elected in 1996.
Lost re-election.

Rush D. Holt Jr.
(Hopewell Township)		 Democratic January 3, 1999 –
January 3, 2015		 106th
107th
108th
109th
110th
111th
112th
113th		 Elected in 1998.
Re-elected in 2000.
Re-elected in 2002.
Re-elected in 2004.
Re-elected in 2006.
Re-elected in 2008.
Re-elected in 2010.
Re-elected in 2012.
Retired.
2003–2013
NJ12congressdistrict

Parts of Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, and Somerset

2013–2023

Mercer (except Hamilton and Robbinsville), Middlesex (Cranbury, Dunellen, East Brunswick, Helmetta, Jamesburg, Middlesex, Milltown, Monroe, North Brunswick, Plainsboro, South Brunswick, South River, and Spotswood), Somerset (Bound Brook, Franklin Township, Manville and South Bound Brook), and Union (Fanwood, Plainfield, and part of Scotch Plains)

Bonnie Watson Coleman
(Ewing Township)		 Democratic January 3, 2015 –
present		 114th
115th
116th
117th
118th		 Elected in 2014.
Re-elected in 2016.
Re-elected in 2018.
Re-elected in 2020.
Re-elected in 2022.
2023–present:

Parts of Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset, and Union (Plainfield)

Recent election results

2012
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2012[5]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Rush Holt (incumbent) 189,938 69.2
Republican Eric Beck 80,907 29.5
Independent Jack Freudenheim 2,261 0.8
Independent Kenneth J. Cody 1,285 0.5
Total votes 274,391 100.0
Democratic hold

2014
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2014[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bonnie Watson Coleman 90,430 60.9
Republican Alieta Eck 54,168 36.5
Independent Don Dezarn 1,330 0.9
Green Steven Welzer 890 0.6
Independent Kenneth J. Cody 567 0.4
Independent Jack Freudenheim 531 0.4
Independent Allen J. Cannon 450 0.3
Total votes 148,366 100.0
Democratic hold

2016
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2016 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bonnie Watson Coleman (incumbent) 181,430 62.9
Republican Steven J. Uccio 92,407 32.0
Independent R. Edward Forchion 6,094 2.1
Independent Robert Shapiro 2,775 1.0
Libertarian Thomas Fitzpatrick 2,482 0.9
Green Steven Welzer 2,135 0.7
Independent Michael R. Bollentin 1,311 0.4
Total votes 288,634 100.0
Democratic hold

2018
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2018[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bonnie Watson Coleman (incumbent) 173,334 68.7
Republican Daryl Kipnis 79,041 31.3
Total votes 252,375 100.0
Democratic hold

2020
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2020[9]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bonnie Watson Coleman (incumbent) 230,883 65.6
Republican Mark Razzoli 114,591 32.6
Independent Ed Forchion 4,512 1.3
Independent Ken Cody 1,739 0.5
Total votes 351,725 100.0
Democratic hold

2022
New Jersey's 12th congressional district, 2022[10]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bonnie Watson Coleman (incumbent) 125,127 63.1
Republican Darius Mayfield 71,175 35.9
Libertarian Lynn Genrich 1,925 1.0
Total votes 198,227 100.0
Democratic hold

References
  1. "My Congressional District".
  2. "2022 Cook PVI: District Map and List".
  3. Barone, Michael; Richard E. Cohen (2008). The Almanac of American Politics. Washington, D.C.: National Journal Group and Atlantic Media Company. pp. 14, 1084. ISBN 978-0-89234-117-7.
  4. , New Jersey Redistricting Commission, December 23, 2021. Accessed January 8, 2023.
  5. "Election Results Archive". NJ Department of State. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  6. "Election Information" (PDF). NJ Department of State. December 2, 2014. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  7. "Election Information" (PDF). NJ Department of State. November 8, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  8. Johnson, Cheryl L. (February 28, 2019). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 6, 2018". Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  9. "Official General Election Results: U.S. House of Representatives" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Elections. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
  10. "2022 Official General Election Results: U.S. House of Representatives" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State - Division of Elections. Retrieved December 7, 2022.

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