Rep. Tom Kean, Jr., challenger Sue Altman face off in New Jersey's District 7 House race
UNION COUNTY, N.J. - The race for congressional District 7 in New Jersey is being closely watched across the nation.
A win for challenger Sue Altman could give Democrats an edge in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A new Monmouth University poll shows Republican incumbent Tom Kean, Jr. is only leading by 2%, and the poll has a margin of error of 4.7%.
The swing district tends to lean red, covering Warren and Hunterdon counties, as well as parts of Somerset, Sussex and Union counties.
Altman, a Democrat, and Kean, a Republican, are flooding the airwaves with political ads. Voters have been bombarded with campaign fliers in the mail.
Altman, Kean sound off on the issues
Kean is focusing on crime and securing the border. Altman on getting guns off the streets and a woman's right to choose.
Altman, a former teach and basketball player, says Kean's record in both the House and New Jersey state legislature is bad for women.
"You have 23 years worth of votes against Planned Parenthood, votes against codifying Roe. He even voted against making sure contraception was included in women's health insurance," Altman said.
Kean commented on the political website the New Jersey Globe.
"I am pro-choice. I have a 21-year record of supporting pro-choice positions, and I would oppose a national abortion ban," Kean has previously said.
CBS News New York has repeatedly reached out to Kean's campaign several times for an interview, but we haven't gotten a response back.
"He knows that the values of his donors don't match the values of this district. These difficult questions we are having, this back and forth - it's tricky - I have to think on my feet. He doesn't want to do that," Altman said.
"She's a progressive activist who will always side with extreme points of view Bernie Sanders," Kean has previously said.
He says Altman called for defunding the police four years ago.
"I regret the 'defund the police' tweet but I also stand [by] the idea that we need to fund law enforcement and fund programs that can prevent crime in the first place," Altman said.
Asked if she wants to defund the police, Altman said "of course not... I absolutely do not."
So what has changed?
"The one time I tweeted that was in a moment when people were really coping with, like, a lot of confusion about what had happened with some deaths of some people at the hands of police, and that was a really important moment in American history," Altman said.
Voters speak out
Some voters say the high cost of living, a woman's right to choose and crime are their top issues this election.
"Safety is huge. Now moreso than ever. I don't leave my doors open. I lock my doors and windows. I like to have the breeze come through the house. I don't do that anymore," Westfield resident Elizabeth Rodriguez said.
"I am definitely for abortion. I have a right to my own body, and don't like any of that, and I think Kean is hiding that," Union County resident Barbara Temple said.
"What's important to me is the economy, food prices, gas prices. A secure border," Union County resident Linda Doss said.
"We need to be supporting small businesses and farms, not massive conglomerates and giant agro-businesses," Altman said.
Pollsters say the race is so close it's hard to predict.
