New Jersey voters packed a meeting this week to quiz State Senator Jon Bramnick about local issues like affordable housing and incoming data centers. But the crowd’s biggest question had absolutely nothing to do with zoning laws: Where on earth is their congressman?
Republican Representative Tom Kean Jr. has been completely ghosting the public eye for nearly three months due to an unexplained medical issue. His prolonged disappearance has left constituents in his highly contested swing district demanding answers, or at least a proof-of-life selfie.
“What’s the word?” Steve McCabe, an 80-year-old retired lawyer, asked Bramnick during the meeting, hoping someone had a GPS tracker on the missing lawmaker.
Bramnick couldn’t provide any actual updates on Kean’s health or current coordinates. Instead, he tried to reassure the anxious audience by reminiscing about the good old days when they served together in the state Legislature, emphasizing that Kean used to hate missing a vote so much he’d tackle a blizzard for it.
“I said, ‘Tom, we should really turn around,'” Bramnick recalled, describing a time the two drove through a dangerous snowstorm just to get to the statehouse.
Apparently, that extreme FOMO has cured itself. Kean has now missed over 100 votes in Congress, and nobody has spotted him in Washington, D.C., or back home in his New Jersey district. He has officially achieved Bigfoot status.
The political hide-and-seek comes at a terrible time for national Republicans. Kean’s seat is a prime target for Democrats who are fighting tooth and nail to retake control of the House of Representatives. Despite the three-month game of telephone and growing questions, Kean’s office insists he is still running for reelection.
Thankfully for his campaign schedule, he faces zero challengers in Tuesday’s Republican primary, while a crowded field of Democrats is currently tearing each other apart for their party’s nomination.
READ: High Stakes In The Situation Room: Inside The Tense Final Countdown For A U.S.-Iran Deal
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
