This GOP congressman is running unopposed in Tuesday’s primary. He’s been missing from Washington for nearly three months

By Sarah Ferris, CNN

(CNN) — GOP Rep. Tom Kean is running unopposed in his primary on Tuesday, seeking a third term in one of the nation’s most competitive seats.

But voters haven’t seen or heard directly from Kean in months — and it’s still unclear when he might return to work on Capitol Hill. Kean has yet to offer a date for his return to House Speaker Mike Johnson and his team, who have been navigating their reed-thin margins without him since early March, according to three GOP leadership sources.

The New Jersey congressman said in late April on social media that he’s dealing with a “personal medical issue,” without specifying what it is, and said he would be back “very soon.” Late last month, he told The New Jersey Globe that he’d be back in the “next couple of weeks.”

His absence, though, is now increasingly rattling House Republicans. Kean’s colleagues say they are worried about his health — and how the unexplained absence could complicate the GOP’s ability to hold onto a critical swing seat in an already difficult midterm cycle, according to multiple sources.

Some Republicans, too, are frustrated by what they see as a massive public relations failure, sources say, with the congressman’s team unable to answer specific questions about his return — and then drawing national scrutiny for the lack of responses.

Multiple aides in Kean’s office did not respond to requests for comment from CNN.

Kean has spoken privately to Johnson since his last vote on March 5. But if the speaker or others in leadership are aware of Kean’s medical condition, they have not disclosed it to their colleagues or their own staff, sources said.

Kean’s absence has mystified many of his House Republican colleagues. Some have been privately raising questions about what happens if Kean is forced to drop out of the race after the primary. Under New Jersey law, a post-primary vacancy would be filled by the state’s GOP county committee leaders. (Kean told the Globe last month that he is planning to run for reelection.)

He has maintained leadership support, however, with Johnson publicly backing him to reporters on Capitol Hill. And he earned a formal Trump endorsement ahead of his primary.

So far, his Democratic opponents in the primary have mostly refrained from using Kean’s absence as a political cudgel on the trail. But Republicans believe it will become a more salient attack line after voters choose their Democratic nominee on Tuesday, choosing between four candidates who’ve each raised more than $1 million. (Former Navy helicopter pilot Rebecca Bennett is considered the frontrunner, raising nearly $3 million.)

Since early March, Kean has continued to post regularly on his social media accounts. But it’s his staff who are attending high school graduations and ribbon cutting ceremonies for new businesses. His last public events appear to have been in early March, when he spent the weekend attending events such as a documentary screening at the Ukrainian American Cultural Center of New Jersey.

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