Dead Congressman Donald Payne WINS his New Jersey primary: Democrat wins weeks after fatal heart attack
Despite his death from a heart attack in April, the late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. won. (D-NJ) will hold his primary election in New Jersey’s 10th congressional district on Tuesday.
Payne ran unopposed for re-election in 2024 for his seat in the deep blue New York City suburb.
On April 6, Payne suffered a heart attack that left him in a coma from which he never woke up. More than 18 days after the cardiac event and while being treated at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Payne was pronounced dead on April 24 at the age of 65.
More than a month after the fatal heart attack, Rep. Payne still wants his election, as the filing deadline to participate in the Democratic primary had already passed at the time of his death.
The Democratic Party in New Jersey did not declare a new candidate after Payne’s death and it is likely that many voters filled out their ballots before his death or before they learned of his death since his name was already on the ballots.
The late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. won his New Jersey primary on Tuesday, June 4 – despite dying in April after a heart attack. Representing one of the most Democratic districts in the country, Payne initially won his 2012 election with more than 87 percent of the vote
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) last month ordered a special primary election on July 16 to decide who would run for the now open seat in the House of Representatives.
In addition, a special general election will be held on September 18 to complete the remainder of Payne’s unexpired term.
The clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives says on his website that Payne’s Washington office and his district offices “will continue to serve the people of his district under their supervision until a new representative is elected.”
Payne, the father of triplets and the son of the first Black man elected to Congress from New Jersey, first took office in 2012.
Before his heart attack, the congressman struggled with health problems, including diabetes and liver problems, which required regular dialysis procedures.
Payne’s death further complicates the already deeply divided House of Representatives. After his death, 212 Democrats and 218 Republicans remain in the House of Representatives of Congress. There are now five vacancies.
If just three Republicans vote with Democrats — or abstain — the split would be 215–215, resulting in a loss on each measure.
This means that Republicans can afford to lose just two Republican Party votes to pass party-line legislation.
A man casts his vote in the New Jersey primary on Tuesday, June 4