Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. is seeking another term in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District against Democratic nominee Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, as questions over Kean’s lengthy absence and financial disclosures follow him into the November election.

NEW JERSEY — Rep. Tom Kean Jr. is back in Congress after an extraordinary nearly four-month absence, but the circumstances surrounding that absence — along with financial disclosures showing securities transactions during the period — have become part of the political battle over New Jersey’s closely watched 7th Congressional District.

Now, another former Navy helicopter pilot is ready to swoop into the hot 7th Congressional District LZ and take out the son of former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean Sr.

Kean, a Republican, returned to Capitol Hill on June 30 after missing House votes since early March. He told Congress that he had been diagnosed with depression and had received treatment, publicly explaining his absence for the first time.

Waiting for him in November is Rebecca Bennett, the Democratic nominee and a former U.S. Navy helicopter pilot who defeated three opponents in the June primary. New Jersey’s official election results show Bennett received 27,525 Democratic primary votes, while Kean ran unopposed on the Republican side and received 35,080 votes.

The election is critical because Kean is one of just three Republicans representing New Jersey in Congress. The other two are Chris Smith and Jeff Van Drew.

Kean Missed Months of Congressional Votes

Kean last voted in the House in early March before disappearing from public congressional business for months. By late May, he had missed more than 100 votes while his office said only that he was dealing with a personal health matter.

When he returned June 30, Kean said he had entered a hospital for testing before being diagnosed with depression.

“Depression is physical, it is emotional,” Kean said during his floor remarks, describing the illness and his treatment.

The absence became a campaign issue before Kean returned, particularly because voters initially received little information about when he might resume his congressional duties.

Bennett said after his return that she was “relieved that Congressman Tom Kean Jr. is well” and wished him good health, while arguing that voters should separately scrutinize his record in office.

Stock Transactions Continued During Absence

Congressional financial disclosures added another dimension to the controversy. It’s a campaign point Bennett isn’t willing to fly away from, but does the public really care about that? We’ll find out in November, but recent polls show her ahead of the veteran GOP candidate.

Kean signed periodic transaction reports covering purchases and sales that occurred while he was absent from congressional voting. A May filing, for example, reported five transactions dated between April 14 and May 17. Another June filing included transactions involving Amcor, Becton Dickinson, EQT and Check Point Software, along with a U.S. Treasury note purchase.

Those disclosures establish that transactions occurred in accounts reported by Kean. They do not, by themselves, establish that Kean personally selected or ordered the trades or whether they were trades made by a broker or other agent.

Kean has said his investments are handled through what he calls a “blind structure” managed by independent professionals.

“I do not direct, influence, or participate in any investment decisions, and every transaction occurs without my input, prior knowledge, or direction,” Kean said in July while supporting legislation restricting congressional stock trading.

Kean also voted for the Stop Insider Trading Act, legislation he said would prohibit members of Congress, spouses and dependent children from purchasing publicly traded individual stocks.

Bennett Makes Stock Trading an Issue

Bennett has repeatedly challenged Kean over those disclosures, arguing that regardless of who placed individual trades, securities transactions continued to appear on reports bearing his name while he was away from Congress.

“Yet Tom Kean Jr. still somehow found time to trade stocks while missing votes,” Bennett said following Kean’s return, framing the issue as part of her broader criticism of congressional stock ownership.

Her campaign has also criticized Kean over a 2022 campaign pledge concerning his investments and says Bennett and her husband have divested their individual stocks.

Kean disputes the implication that he personally traded stocks while undergoing treatment. His office says investment decisions are made independently and without his direction. Republican campaign organizations have likewise accused Democrats of misleading voters by describing the disclosed transactions as trades personally executed by Kean.

The distinction is significant: congressional financial reports disclose transactions connected to lawmakers and covered accounts, but the filings alone do not show who initiated each investment decision.

Transactions Have Continued Since Kean Returned

Kean’s most recent disclosures show that the activity did not end with his return to Washington.

A September 12 filing lists six transactions from August, including partial sales of Alphabet, Johnson & Johnson and Microsoft shares, along with purchases involving MasTec and Linde. The disclosed values were reported in federally required ranges rather than exact dollar amounts.

Public congressional filing data also show Kean has regularly filed periodic transaction reports throughout his tenure. The existence of those filings is not evidence of illegal trading or insider trading, and the available 2026 transactions reviewed were reported within the STOCK Act disclosure window.

Former Navy Helicopter Pilot Seeks Kean’s Seat

Bennett brings a substantially different résumé into the general election.

She served more than a decade as a Navy helicopter pilot and aircraft commander and later served in the Air National Guard. Her campaign also describes her professional background as including work in healthcare and healthcare innovation.

Her military background has become a prominent part of her campaign identity. Bennett has repeatedly contrasted her years of military service with what she says voters should expect from their representative in Washington.

Kean, meanwhile, is seeking another term representing the six-county 7th District, which includes portions of Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren counties.

The November contest gives voters a choice between an incumbent whose 2026 term included an unusually long health-related absence and continued financial-disclosure scrutiny, and a Democratic challenger campaigning heavily on her military experience, congressional ethics and a proposed ban on individual stock trading by lawmakers.