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Rep. Tom Kean Jr. cites depression for mysterious 4-month absence

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on

Published in Political News

New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean Jr. resurfaced Tuesday on Capitol Hill and said treatment for depression was the cause of his four-month absence from public view.

Kean, 57, the scion of a famed Garden State political family, said in a speech on the floor of the House that he was hospitalized to treat the condition but now expects to return to a full work schedule and to campaign for another term in office.

“I was given the diagnosis of depression,” Kean said. “The doctors recommended I remain in the hospital to address my illness.”

Kean, a two-term incumbent, said he did not know that depression can have such a debilitating physical and emotional impact.

“Until you experience it yourself, it is difficult to fully understand how powerful this illness can be,” he said.

The GOP lawmaker said he had kept quiet about his condition because he is “a private person by nature.”

He said he is not ashamed of joining the nearly 50 million Americans who deal with depression and insisted he did not mislead the public when he repeatedly missed self-imposed deadlines to return to the public eye.

“There is no timeline for healing,” Kean said. “Today I stand before you healthier, stronger and excited to return to the work that I love.”

Kean faces a tough reelection fight in his affluent suburban battleground district that is expected to be a marquee matchup in the fall midterms as Democrats seek to retake the House of Representatives.

Democratic challenger Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, has slammed Kean for going AWOL on the district and failing to explain his disappearance from public view for so long.

 

Bennett said she is “relieved that Congressman Tom Kean Jr. is well” but blamed him for “failing our community long before this absence.”

The challenger also blasted him for trading stocks during his treatment.

“This is the self-serving culture in Washington that New Jerseyans are rejecting, and the kind of behavior they are sick and tired of from career politicians,” Bennett said in a statement.

Democrats have targeted the district as a prime pickup opportunity, given that the seat has changed hands in the last two midterm elections.

Kean missed more than 100 votes in Congress since March 5 and won the GOP primary even though he didn’t campaign at all.

President Donald Trump endorsed Kean’s reelection, praising him as “hardworking” without mentioning the long absence.

Kean comes from a famed New Jersey family. His namesake father is the former two-term governor. His great-grandfather was a senator, his grandfather was a congressman.

_____


©2026 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

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