By: Michael Matthews | Publish Date: October 29, 2026
The 2026 midterms will take place on Tuesday, November 3. In New Jersey, the elections will feature races for all 12 House seats and one of the two Senate seats. The lives, the careers, and the academics of many Kean University students may be impacted by these elections, as members of the United States Congress make decisions surrounding several issues: federal student aid, higher-education funding, research grants, civil rights enforcement, and international student enrollment.
Kean University has grown dramatically this year. The July 2026 merger with New Jersey City University created Kean Jersey City, and per University Relations, Kean will serve 18,401 students across all of its American campuses. Since Kean USA’s campuses span several congressional districts, the outcome of the midterms could have a different impact on each campus.
Kean Union
The main campus in Union is the center of Kean’s research, residential and administrative operations. It resides in the 10th congressional district, currently represented by LaMonica McIver, a Democrat. This November, she will be running against Republican Carmen Bucco. McIver supports federal funding to uplift teachers and looks to address the issues they face. She is also a strong supporter of Kean University, as she earned a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Leadership and Administration from Kean which she completed between 2015 and 2019.
“We have failed our children’s education,” Bucco said on her website. “Statistics show that our students are not where they should be academically, but we continue to spend too much time focusing on other matters. Our focus should be on providing a safe and high-quality learning environment.”
Research and higher education funding can be affected by this election. Kean is now an R2 research university and says it has received more than $4 million in federal research funding. Changes in congressional appropriations can therefore affect grant opportunities used by faculty and students. Changes in Pell Grants, federal work-study and student loans would be especially noticeable.
Dr. James Castiglione, a Physics professor in the Chemistry Physics Department and the President of Kean Federation of Teachers at Kean Union, casted doubt on the impact of the midterm elections on Kean University.
“Our federal government does have some impact on us,” Castiglione said. “There have been some changes under the Trump administration that have negatively impacted the University such as the loss of certain grants from the National Institute of Health, National Science Foundation and other sources.”
Kean Jersey City
Kean Jersey City is located in New Jersey’s 8th congressional district. The midterm race is an uncontested, major party race, and the ballot includes incumbent Democrat Rob Menendez, no Republican candidate, Aristotle Eliopoulos running as an Independent, Craig Honts of the Socialist Workers Party, and independent Da’Shone Hughey.
The campus was a part of New Jersey City University, which successfully merged with Kean on July 1, 2026 The campus now offers more than 59 undergraduate and 31 graduate programs. The federal side of the merger comes into play at this campus due to the Kean-NJCU merger.
Menendez is “fighting to make all levels of education more accessible and affordable.” He supports the Keep Our Promise to America’s Children and Teachers Act and the Universal School Meals Program Act to ensure equitable access to quality elementary and secondary education. He is a co-sponsor of the College for All Act and the Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act. Eliopoulos’ and Hont’s views on higher education have not been published, while Hughey’s higher education policies include “expanding access to technology education, digital literacy, robotics, and AI learning so young people are ready to compete and lead.”
Kean Ocean
Kean Ocean operates on Ocean County College’s Toms River campus. Toms River is in the 4th congressional district, where representative Chris Smith, a Republican, will face Democrat Rachel Peace in the election. Chris Smith has been representing the district since 1981. This election could affect student aid for students at Kean Ocean, as Congress can change policies allocating Federal Pell Grants, loans and work-study funding to students. As a result, the winning representative can either advocate for or against local education grants and vote on federal spending. The election will not set the tuition, which has been set for the 2026-27 academic year, nor will it rewrite the OCC-Kean transfer agreement or alter a student’s current aid award.
Smith supports the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026, which would block federal higher education funding from colleges that engage in non-expressive commercial boycotts of Israel or remove academic programs and exchanges with Isreali universities.
Meanwhile, Peace will “fight to make New Jersey, and our nation, affordable for working people”, and views housing and cost-of-living measures as top issues.
Kean Skylands
Kean Skylands could be particularly affected by the 2026 midterm elections through environmental research funding, federal higher education policy, student financial aid, and conservation programs. This campus has a distinctive identity as an outdoor research and education campus. It sits in the 11th congressional district, where the candidates are Democrat Analilia Mejia, Republican Joe Hathaway, independent Alan B. Bond.
The university’s environmental science programs use its grounds for fieldwork, and its 2026 SKYLAB program included climate change, biodiversity, renewable energy, water and soil analysis and drone-based environmental mapping. Congressional budget negotiations following the election could affect federal grant opportunities relevant to these subjects.
Public record and advocacy work show a strong commitment from Mejia regarding equitable access, funding, and quality in education at all levels (including college). Hathaway’s beliefs that New Jersey and America need a skilled workforce to compete with the global economy lead him to believe education should be more affordable and aligned with current jobs. This includes capping student loan interest. Finally, Bond also believes education after high school should be more affordable and prepare students for success in adulthood.
As a college student, there are major stakes in the midterms. To see your polling place, visit this link.
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