迈克·卡塔利尼 新泽西州共和党联邦众议员汤姆·基恩二世今年缺席众议院工作长达四个月，原因长期未予说明，直至他披露正在接受抑郁症治疗；他与民主党候选人丽贝卡·贝内特将于周日晚举行这场胶着竞争中首场也是唯一一场竞选辩论。
MIKE CATALINI Tom Kean Jr., the Republican congressman from New Jersey whose four-month absence from the House this year went unexplained until he disclosed that he was being treated for depression , and Democrat Rebecca Bennett are readying for the first and only campaign debate Sunday night in their closely contested race.
第七国会选区包含唐纳德·特朗普总统的贝德明斯特高尔夫俱乐部，过去两届中期选举中该选区政党控制权每次都易手，使其成为竞选资金争夺的焦点和一种政治风向标。共和党正试图捍卫其在众议院微弱的多数优势，而此时特朗普的支持率深陷负面区域，且因其与伊朗的对抗导致油价上涨。
The 7th Congressional District , which includes President Donald Trump’s Bedminster golf club, has changed party control in each of the past two midterm elections, making it a magnet for campaign spending and a kind of political barometer. Republicans are trying to defend their narrow House majority at a time when Trump’s approval rating is deeply underwater and gas prices are rising because of his war with Iran .
基恩曾任州议员，出身政坛世家，正在争取第三个任期。缺席期间，他错过了100多次投票表决。
Kean, a former state legislator who comes from a deep-rooted political family, is seeking a third term. During his absence, he missed more than 100 votes.
他于6月复工，表示曾因抑郁症住院治疗，并称自己天生性格内向。
He returned in June and said he had been hospitalized for depression and that he was a private person by nature.
贝内特是前海军飞行员，也曾担任医疗保健高管，属于政治新人。她在6月赢得激烈的初选，普遍被视为比其竞争对手更温和、更具当选潜力的民主党候选人。数百万美元资金涌入该选区竞选。
Bennett, a former Navy pilot who also worked as a healthcare executive, is a political newcomer. She won a competitive primary in June and was widely viewed as a more moderate and electable Democrat than some of her competitors.
上周，一个与共和党总统有关的超级政治行动委员会表示将投入逾300万美元助选基恩。另一个与民主党有关的政治行动委员会则预留约250万美元，用于在纽约媒体市场投放电视广告，助选贝内特及另一纽约选区的民主党候选人。
Millions of dollars have poured into the race. Last week, a super PAC tied to the Republican president indicated it would spend more than $3 million to help Kean in the race. Another political action committee tied to Democrats has set aside about $2.5 million for television ads in the New York market to help Bennett and another Democrat in a New York district.
2020年人口普查后的重新划分选区使基恩的选区略微更倾向共和党。尽管如此，民主党仍视其为重点翻红目标。
Kean’s district became slightly more Republican after the redistricting following the 2020 census. Nonetheless, Democrats view it as a prime pickup opportunity.
基恩于2022年击败民主党籍时任议员汤姆·马利诺夫斯基当选，后者曾在2018年击败共和党籍伦纳德·兰斯夺得该席位。
Kean won in 2022 by unseating Democrat Tom Malinowski, who had ousted Republican Leonard Lance in 2018.
基恩的家族世代从政，可追溯至250年前建国之初，当时他的一位祖先成为新泽西州独立后的首任领袖。基恩的曾祖父是参议员，祖父是众议员，父亲曾两度担任州长。
Kean comes from a long line of public servants, stretching 250 years to the country’s founding when one of his ancestors became New Jersey’s first leader since independence. Kean’s great-grandfather was a senator, his grandfather was a congressman and his father was a two-term governor.