President Trump will travel to Wildwood, New Jersey Jan. 28 to hold a rally in the district of party-switching freshman congressman Jeff Van Drew, fulfilling a promise he made to support Van Drew’s campaign for reelection.
One of just two Democrats to vote against both articles of impeachment on Dec. 18 Van Drew, 66, joined the Republican Party the next day and pledged his “undying support” for the president in an Oval Office news conference.
Van Drew said he and Trump discussed a presidential visit to his district during the meeting. Trump is the first presidential candidate to hold a rally in the area since George H.W. Bush in 1992.
In his decision to leave the Democratic Party, Van Drew cited pressure from Democrats on impeachment and the investigation leading up to it. He said that he was told by the Atlantic County Democratic chairman that by voting against impeachment, he was “not going to get the line,” implying he would lose the support of the party.
By contrast, the reaction at home “has been extraordinary,” Van Drew said in an interview 11 days after making the switch. Van Drew indicated that the president would visit his district sometime in January or February. “He will be here,” Van Drew said. “I think it is amazing that he is coming here to support our people and to support me.”
About 40% of the state of New Jersey is in Van Drew’s district — the state’s largest.
Following his departure from the party, the House Democrats’ political action committee asked Van Drew to return a campaign contribution they had made to him.
Amy Kennedy, the wife of former Rhode Island congressman Patrick Kennedy and daughter-in-law of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, announced in a YouTube video Monday that she will run for congress to oppose him, one of five Democrats to announce a run for Van Drew’s seat. Van Drew’s reelection prospects as a Republican are uncertain.
