The Ballot Brief › New Jersey › Nelida Pou
Nelida Pou
Democratic · New Jersey · 2026 · IncumbentNelida 'Nellie' Pou is the sitting U.S. Representative for this district, sworn in January 2025 as the first Latina from New Jersey in Congress, serving on Transportation and Infrastructure and Homeland Security, per her official House biography. She served as a state senator for the 35th District from 2012 after entering the Assembly in 1997, and spent over 40 years working for the City of Paterson, including as Business Administrator.
Priorities
- Lowering housing, grocery, child care, and health costs, including extending ACA tax credits, per her campaign site
- Protecting health care, including the ACA, Medicaid, and drug costs, per her campaign site
- Community safety, including police funding and 2026 World Cup security at MetLife, per her campaign site
Key voting record
- Voted no on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the 2025 tax-and-spending package, which passed the House 218-214 in July 2025. Opposed
- Voted no on the Laken Riley Act, expanding federal detention of certain immigrants charged with theft or violent crimes, which passed the House 263-156 in January 2025. Opposed
- Voted no on the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026, which passed the House 231-196 in September 2025. Opposed
- Voted no on the November 2025 funding agreement that ended the government shutdown, which passed the House 222-209 in November 2025. Opposed
- Voted no on the September 2025 stopgap funding bill, which passed the House 217-212 in September 2025. Opposed
- Voted no on the March 2025 full-year stopgap funding bill, which passed the House 217-213 in March 2025. Opposed
On the ballot
U.S. House, NJ-9 · New Jersey · 2026
How we source this
Profile facts follow official election office filings and the sources cited in each biography. Official sources are the final word on who appears on your ballot.