A week after Rebecca Bennett got an endorsement from former Summit Mayor Jordan Glatt, former Summit Councilman Greg Vartan’s campaign for New Jersey’s 7th congressional district has earned the support of a different Summit leader: former Mayor Nora Radest, who led Vartan’s hometown until 2023.
“Greg is Summit through and through – born and raised here, and deeply committed to the people who call it home,” Radest said after hosting a pro-Vartan event at her home over the weekend. “He embodies a new generation of Democratic leaders who put community first, rise above politics, and always stand by their neighbors.”
Radest was first elected mayor in 2015, ousting one-term Republican incumbent Ellen Dickson, and was re-elected unopposed in 2019. She stepped aside in 2023 rather than seek a third term, and was succeeded by Republican Elizabeth Fagan; Radest and Glatt remain the only two Democrats to lead Summit in the last century.
(Radest also got involved in this year’s gubernatorial primary, supporting Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop’s campaign; Fulop ultimately came in second in Summit, winning 20% of the vote to eventual nominee Mikie Sherrill’s 53%.)
Radest’s time in city government overlapped with that of Vartan, who was elected to the common council in 2018 and became council president in 2023 before retiring at the end of last year. Vartan also remains the chairman of the Summit Democratic municipal committee.
Democrats are currently down to just two seats out of seven on the council – and both of those Democrats, Ward 1 Councilwoman Michelle Kalmanson and Ward 2 Councilwoman Claire Toth, have endorsed Vartan’s congressional campaign.
Vartan and Bennett are two of eight Democratic candidates seeking to unseat Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield) in the 7th district. Also running are climate scientist Megan O’Rourke, attorney Vale Mendoza, former Small Business Administration official Michael Roth, criminal justice professor Beth Adubato, businessman Brian Varela, and physician Tina Shah.
