East Brunswick Mayor Brad Cohen has an early financial lead in the packed Democratic primary for the 12th congressional district, in large part because many of his top opponents got off to a very slow start in fundraising, per 4th quarter fundraising reports due last night.
Cohen, who is also a practicing physician, raised $279,256 in the month and a half between his November campaign launch and the end of 2025. At least for now, that makes him by far the best-funded Democrat hoping to succeed retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing) in her safely blue Central Jersey district.
The only other candidate who crossed the $100,000 threshold was Jay Vaingankar, a former Energy Department official in the Biden administration, who raised $154,109.
Three local elected officials from across the district, all of whom are seen as serious contenders to succeed Watson Coleman, lagged far behind. Plainfield Mayor Adrian Mapp raised $82,731, a total that includes some self-funding; Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D-Trenton) raised $70,295; and Somerset County Commissioner Shanel Robinson (D-Franklin) raised $56,892.
Plenty of other Democrats also entered the race in 2025, but none of them reported raising huge amount of money: attorney Squire Servance raised $34,478, former Middlesex Councilman Matt Adams raised $10,317, former West Windsor mayoral candidate Sujit Singh raised $7,048, fitness studio owner Kyle Little raised $4,055, and community activist Mike Anderson raised $1,275.
Two more candidates who launched campaigns last quarter, Millstone Mayor Raymond Heck and entrepreneur Elijah Dixon, did not file any fundraising reports; a third, housing policy researcher Iziah Thompson, submitted a statement saying he had not yet reached the $5,000 reporting threshold.
With just over four months to go until the June 2 primary, the relatively low fundraising totals all around leave plenty of room for candidates with more national fundraising connections to upend the race. Two of those potential candidates, physicians Adam Hamawy and Rick Morales, both launched campaigns after the 4th quarter ended, and Hamawy said he raised $215,000 after his campaign kickoff; another would-be contender with proven fundraising prowess, Sue Altman, is seriously considering getting in the race.
