2010 United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey

The 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey were held on November 4, 2010, to elect the 13 U.S. representatives from the state of New Jersey, one from each of the state's 13 congressional districts. The primary election in which candidates were chosen took place on June 8, 2010.

As of 2024, this is the last time the Republicans won the popular vote for the House in New Jersey, even though they did not win a majority of congressional seats. As a result, New Jersey became one of three states in which the party that won the state's popular vote did not win a majority of seats in 2010, the other states being Iowa and North Carolina.

District 1
Democrat Rob Andrews has been in Congress since 1990. He won re-election in 2008 with 72%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat.

District 2
Republican Frank LoBiondo has been in Congress since 1995. He won re-election in 2008 with 59%, despite Democrat Barack Obama simultaneously carrying the district. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Republican.

District 3
Democratic incumbent John Adler is running for reelection, challenged by Republican nominee Jon Runyan, NJ Tea Party nominee Peter DeStefano, Libertarian nominee Russ Conger, and Your Country Again nominee Lawrence J. Donahue.

Retired NFL player Jon Runyan was a star offensive lineman who played most of his career with the nearby Philadelphia Eagles as the South Jersey district is a suburb of Philadelphia. In May he took the unusual step of revealing some controversial information about himself: that he was late to pay some taxes and was sued in some business dealings. He says he is "a different type of candidate" by acknowledging his mistakes. With $1.7 million in Adler's campaign account back in April, he has a major cash advantage. CQ Politics rates this election as Lean Democrat.

On October 8, 2010, CourierPostOnline.com reported that Steve Ayscue, the paid head of operations for the Camden County Democratic Committee (CCDC), and Geoff Mackler, sent by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to manage John Adler's campaign, devised a plan to put a candidate on the ballot to divert votes from Republican Jon Runyan. They presented the plan at CCDC Headquarters during a May 26 meeting of the South Jersey Young Democrats, and some of those present joined in circulating a petition to place Peter DeStefano, owner-operator of a picture-framing business, on the ballot. DeStefano will appear on the "NJ Tea Party" line on the November 2 ballot. The article reports, "A Democratic operative with knowledge of the Adler campaign's operation said Ayscue is in charge of the campaign website, Facebook and Twitter accounts promoting the DeStefano campaign." In 2008, State Senator John Adler defeated Chris Myers, a town councilman, with 52% of the vote, while Obama carried the district with the same amount. Adler died on April 4, 2011, four months after his defeat.

Polling
†Internal poll for Adler campaign

District 4
Republican Chris Smith has been in Congress since 1981. In 2008, he won re-election with 66%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Republican.

District 5
Republican Scott Garrett has been in Congress since 2003. In 2008, he won re-election with 56% of the vote. CQ Politics rated this election as Safe Republican.

District 6
Democrat Frank Pallone has been in Congress since 1988. In 2008, he won re-election with 67%. His 2010 Republican opponent is Anna Little, the Mayor of Highlands. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat. Ultimately, Pallone lost his home county of Monmouth for the first and only time in his career.

District 7
Republican Leonard Lance was first elected in 2008, the former state Senate Minority Leader Lance defeated Assemblywoman Linda Stender with 50%. The Democratic challenger is former high school science teacher Ed Potosnak, who if elected would be the first openly gay member of New Jersey's congressional delegation. Despite the bare majority received by Lance in the 2008 election and the fact that Barack Obama carried the district that same year, CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Republican.

District 8
Democrat Bill Pascrell has been in Congress since 1997. In 2008, he won re-election with 71%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat.

District 9
Democrat Steve Rothman has been in Congress since 1997. In 2008, he won re-election with 68%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat.

District 10
Democrat Donald Payne has been in Congress since 1989. In 2008, he won re-election unopposed. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat. Payne later died on March 6, 2012, halfway through his term.

District 11
Republican Rodney Frelinghuysen has been in Congress since 1995. In 2008, he won re-election with 62%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Republican.

District 12
Holt has represented the district since 1999. In 2008, he won re-election with 63%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat, Cook Political Report rates it Likely Democratic, and Real Clear Politics rates it as Lean Democratic.

District 13
Democrat Albio Sires has been in Congress since 2006. In 2008, he won re-election with 75%. CQ Politics rates this election as Safe Democrat. This was the last election before the elimination of this seat after the 2010 census.