New Jersey District Race to Feature Three Female Candidates
The November 2026 congressional election in the 9th District will see women competing for the seat.
Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Women’s Issues
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Nellie Pou and Rosemary Pino are among the candidates competing for New Jersey's 9th Congressional District seat in the November 2026 election. Notably, all three candidates on the district ballot are women.
Why it matters
The race highlights the ongoing participation of women in congressional elections, where women currently represent 32% of total major-party nominees. It also marks a potential shift for the state, which has historically sent only 10 women to the House of Representatives.
Nationally, 271 women secured major-party House nominations this year, accounting for 32% of all nominees. In New Jersey, women currently hold four of the state's 12 total House seats.
The players
Nellie Pou
She is the incumbent who became the first woman to represent New Jersey's 9th Congressional District in January 2025.
Rosemary Pino
She is the Republican nominee running for the congressional seat.
Terrisa Bukovinac
She is an independent candidate running for the seat under the slogan Save Our Babies.
The details
The race features Democrat Nellie Pou, who became the first woman to represent the district in January 2025, and Republican nominee Rosemary Pino. Independent candidate Terrisa Bukovinac is also running under the slogan Save Our Babies, rounding out a field composed entirely of women.
Timeline
1925: Mary Teresa Norton became New Jersey's first congresswoman.
January 2003: Marge Roukema left office.
January 2015: Bonnie Watson Coleman took office.
January 2025: Nellie Pou took office as the first woman to represent the 9th District.
November 2026: The congressional election occurs.
Culture Shift
This election highlights a broader societal trend of increasing female participation in politics, though New Jersey still lags in Senate representation. The contest reflects a push to normalize female leadership in a state where only 10 women have ever held a House seat.
Residents of the 9th District, including those in Paterson, Passaic, and Clifton, will choose their representative from a field of three female candidates. This election directly determines who will advocate for local interests in Bergen and Hudson counties for the next term.
The takeaway
The presence of three female candidates in the 9th District represents a notable milestone for local representation in New Jersey. Voters can evaluate these candidates based on their specific platforms to determine who best aligns with their priorities for the upcoming legislative term.
What happens next
The congressional election is scheduled to take place in November 2026.
Further reading
For more background on the status of female representatives in the state, visit the New Jersey Women’s Issues page.
Source note: This article includes information reported by North Jersey.
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