The politician switching parties over Trump impeachment vote has voted against same sex marriage
As rumors have rummaged in the halls of the Capital for nearly a week, it’s now confirmed by several sources that Representative Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey is going to align himself as a Republican, cementing his decision to oppose Democrats in the impeachment process.
Van Drew now becomes only the second Republican in Congress for the Garden State, which is otherwise completely Democrat-led at both the state and federal level, due to a blue wave there as of late. Van Drew is already reportedly unpopular among his constituents, and last month on a conference call he pledged not to jump lines despite his opposition to the party line of focusing on impeachment efforts.
Now, the New York Times (among others) is reporting that Van Drew has already informed staff that he will publicly declare himself a member of the GOP as soon as next week. This follows a week of much-rumored courting by conservatives and a Friday meeting with President Trump, in which Van Drew was given the “blessing for the move” and “encouraged” to jump across party lines. Meanwhile, state Democratic leader spent the weekend trying to reach him to no avail. Trump tweeted Congressman Van Drew with thanks for ‘being honest’.
Thank you for your honesty Jeff. All of the Democrats know you are right, but unlike you, they don’t have the “guts” to say so! https://t.co/OUc46HUwPq
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 15, 2019
A major factor that may have pushed the representative to change his mind on being a Democrat was a poll his staffers received that suggested that 71% of his district’s Democrats would have voted against him in the 2020 primary if he chose not to support impeachment of Trump. A Washington Post inquiry poll also found a majority believing Van Drew’s seat should go to another Democrat. This follows the last election cycle in which all 3 local candidates Van Drew supported lost to their opponents, signaling his lack of influence with voters. He has endorsed current New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker in the 2020 Presidential election, and he’s not too hot at the polls, either.
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