A new name has entered the fray in the still-developing Democratic primary to succeed retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing): Squire Servance, a patent and life sciences attorney from Mercer County.
Servance is launching an exploratory committee for Watson Coleman’s seat today, and he said he plans to embark on “community conversations, listening sessions, and opportunities for residents to share the issues that matter most to them” around the 12th congressional district, a diverse and deep-blue Central Jersey district.
“I believe in a New Jersey where every family can afford to stay and thrive,” Servance said in a statement. “Where healthcare is accessible, seniors are protected, small businesses can grow, good jobs are created, and our children have real opportunities ahead of them. Over the coming weeks, I look forward to listening to neighbors, faith and community leaders, and families across NJ-12 as I consider the best way to serve.”
Servance was born and raised in South Jersey, and graduated from Rutgers. After earning his law degree at Duke University, he spent a year as a law clerk for Tenth Circuit Judge Jerome Holmes in Oklahoma.
He has since held a number of positions at major law firms and pharmaceutical companies, and currently works as an attorney at the law firm Wilson Sonsini and as a managing partner at Syridex Bio, a Princeton-based life sciences firm focused on “address[ing] the needs of underserved communities.” He lives in Pennington with his wife and daughters.
This isn’t his first campaign for public office, though it’s his first anywhere near the boundaries of the 12th district. In 2011, Servance challenged the Democratic organization’s preferred candidate for mayor of Camden County’s Winslow Township, where he grew up, losing by a small 53%-47% margin.
Servance is far from the only Democrat interested in succeeding Watson Coleman, who has represented the 12th district since 2015. Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D-Trenton), Somerset County Commissioner Shanel Robinson (D-Franklin), and East Brunswick Mayor Brad Cohen have all launched campaigns for the seat, and plenty of others are looking at the race as well.
In an earlier, more insider-dominated era of New Jersey politics, someone like Servance might be locked out of seriously competing in the primary, which would be dominated by party endorsements and better-known candidates. But with the county line gone and dozens of candidates stepping up to run for Congress all across the state, that may no longer be true.
“As our district turns the page, we need leadership that continues showing up for families and builds on the strong foundation Congresswoman Watson Coleman laid,” Severance said today.
