Cory Booker is now campaigning against ex-Democrat who endorsed him

(Image credit: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

published 16 December 2019

The reported decision by Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-N.J.) to switch parties was sure to have some consequences from his soon-to-be former Democratic colleagues. And he's already facing them in his own backyard.

Van Drew had previously endorsed Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in his bid for the presidency in a show of in-state loyalty. But Booker won't be returning the favor. Unsurprisingly, the senator doesn't seem very happy that the congressman is switching sides, and he wants New Jerseyans to help support whoever winds up as Van Drew's Democratic challenger in his own House re-election bid.

The cross-aisle transition will be interesting to watch, and there's some speculation about whether President Trump will support his candidacy in the long run, either. Van Drew is a centrist Democrat, but he has stuck with the party on nearly every major piece of legislation since he was sworn in in 2019, making his anti-impeachment stance the only major Republican cause he's taken up so far. Tim O'Donnell

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.