Congressional District 7 Democratic candidate Rebecca Bennett won vote of the Westfield Democratic Committee ahead of the upcoming endorsement vote by the Regular Democratic Organization of Union County.

Bennett received nearly 79 percent of the vote, emerging as the clear consensus choice of Westfield committee members.

“We are fortunate to have so many qualified Democratic candidates running for Congress in our district,” said Bruno Tedeschi, chair of the Westfield Democratic Committee.

CD7 Democratic candidate Rebecca Bennett flanked by Fanwood Mayor and Democratic Chair Colleen Mahr and Westfield Democratic Chair Bruno Tedeschi during a February meet and greet with the candidate at the Union County Democratic Committee HQ.

“While each candidate brought real strengths to the race, Rebecca emerged as the consensus choice given her extraordinary record of service to this country, including as a combat veteran," Tedeschi said. "At a moment when our nation is again facing the realities of war, committee members felt her leadership, credibility and commitment to service would strongly resonate with voters across the district."

The vote followed a two-hour discussion Thursday among committee members about the Democratic candidates running in what is expected to be one of the country’s most competitive House races this cycle. After the discussion, ranked choice voting was opened on rcv123.com for 24 hours and closed at 9 p.m. Friday.

Of the 38 votes cast in the ranked-choice vote, Bennett received 30 first-round votes. Michael Roth received five, Brian Varela received two and Megan O’Rourke received one. Tina Shah, Beth Adubato and the remaining candidates did not receive any first-round votes.

Prior to the vote, the Democratic committees of Westfield, Summit and Fanwood jointly sponsored one-hour meet and greets with each of the CD7 candidates.

“I’m grateful to each candidate who stepped up to run,” Tedeschi said. "Campaigning for public office requires a tremendous commitment of time and energy. Our democracy is stronger when people are willing to make the put themselves forward to serve.”

Under the committee’s unwritten rules, the vote is binding on the chair and determines how Westfield will participate in the March 18 endorsement vote by the Regular Democratic Organization of Union County.

Tedeschi noted that Westfield Democrats have recently backed candidates who went on to win major statewide races, including Mikie Sherrill for governor last year and Andy Kim for U.S. Senate in 2024.

“Our committee members take these decisions seriously and spend real time researching and discussing the candidates,” Tedeschi said. “In recent years Westfield Democrats have supported candidates who went on to win statewide, and we believe Rebecca Bennett has the kind of record and leadership that can connect with voters across this district.”

Ranked Choice Vote Results