Political stakes across South Jersey are set to intensify next month as incumbent Republican Representative Jeff Van Drew prepares to face Democratic contender Zack Mullock in a televised candidate forum. The upcoming debate will provide voters throughout the region an opportunity to assess both candidates side-by-side as they articulate their competing visions for the future of New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District.
The single-hour event is officially scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. on October 22. It will be hosted within the Campus Center Theatre located on Stockton University's Galloway campus, creating an academic setting for a critical face-off between the sitting congressman and his municipal-level challenger.
The high-profile political program is organized as a collaborative effort, co-sponsored by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University alongside regional daily newspaper The Press of Atlantic City. Both institutions have partnered to coordinate the staging, questioning, and broadcasting framework for the joint appearance.
While the candidates will be physically present inside the Campus Center Theatre, organizers have established that there will be no live audience seated inside the venue. Instead, the debate will be made accessible to the broader public solely through live digital broadcasts, which will be streamed on the Hughes Center’s dedicated YouTube channel and directly on The Press of Atlantic City’s official website.
The absence of an in-person audience shifts the dynamic of the confrontation, placing an exclusive spotlight on the verbal exchanges and camera presentation of the participants. Without applause, interruptions, or immediate constituent reactions in the room, both Van Drew and Mullock will be required to deliver clear, structured arguments addressed straight to remote viewers across the district.
To ensure that community interests remain central to the dialogue, the sponsoring entities have opened a public submission process for debate topics. Local residents and registered voters throughout South Jersey are encouraged to forward their policy questions directly to the organizing bodies prior to the broadcast.
Questions can be submitted electronically via email to either the Hughes Center at hughescenter@stockton.edu or to The Press of Atlantic City newsroom at newstips@pressofac.com. Sponsoring coordinators have instructed members of the general public to include the designated phrase "CD2 Questions" within the email subject header to facilitate sorting and review.
The questioning during the one-hour broadcast will be directed by a panel of media and policy professionals. Nicholas Huba, who serves as the digital editor for The Press of Atlantic City, will join Alyssa Maurice, the assistant director for the Hughes Center, in pressing the two candidates on district issues and legislative priorities.
The incumbent, Representative Jeff Van Drew, brings extensive legislative experience to the debate stage, having represented the 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2019. His tenure on Capitol Hill has been marked by notable political transitions, most prominently his shift in political party affiliation.
Originally elected to the federal legislature as a Democrat, Van Drew formally switched his party registration to become a Republican in January 2020. Beyond his work in Washington, D.C., Van Drew worked as a practicing dentist in private life and built his political foundation through local public offices, having previously served as the mayor of Dennis Township as well as a Cape May County freeholder.
Challenging the incumbent is Zack Mullock, who enters the congressional race with significant background in coastal municipal governance. Mullock currently holds executive office as the mayor of the City of Cape May, now serving in his second term leading the historic seaside municipality.
Prior to assuming the mayoralty in Cape May, Mullock accumulated local legislative experience by serving as a regular member of the Cape May City Council. His campaign for the 2nd Congressional District Democratic nomination presents voters with a leadership profile rooted in municipal administration and community management.
The debate centers on a vast and geographically diverse swath of South Jersey. The 2nd Congressional District encompasses the entirety of Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland, and Salem counties, spanning coastal resort towns, rural agricultural areas, and suburban hubs.
In addition to those four full counties, the congressional district’s boundaries extend into regional portions of Gloucester and Ocean counties. This expansive territory requires both candidates to speak to a complex mosaic of constituent concerns ranging from local infrastructure to regional economic development.
With election season underway, the scheduled October 22 debate between Representative Van Drew and Mayor Mullock stands as a pivotal milestone for South Jersey electorate engagement. The event guarantees an unfiltered platform for both candidates to outline their records, platform proposals, and opposing philosophies before voters make their decisions.
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