Today is Election Day in the Tenth Congressional District, where primary voters in a special election head to the polls from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

This special election will fill the vacancy left by Donald Payne Jr. (D), who died on April 24. The general election will occur on September 18.

It’s a large field in the Democratic Party Primary in New Jersey’s most Democratic district: Derek Armstead of Linwood, Brittany Claybrooks of East Orange, John Flora of Asbury, Darryl Godfrey of Newark, Alberta Gordon of Newark, Eugene Mazo of Newark, Lamonica McIver of Newark, Shana Melius of Secaucus, Sheila Montague of Newark, Debra Salters of Newark, and Jerry Walker of Jersey City.

On the Republican side, Carmen Bucco of Kenilworth is running.

The Council President of the Newark City Council, McIver is the favorite in part based on the support she has from Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and the Baraka organization, and the Essex County Democratic Committee. McIver also has a reputation as an active grassroots representative in Newark’s Central Ward.

The candidates vying for the seat have the considerable task of succeeding the late Congressman Payne, a measured and dignified representative, who nearly three months after his death seems almost like someone from the deep past, compared to the political America of this precise moment.

According to Ballotpedia, “As of the 2020 Census, New Jersey representatives represented an average of 774,541 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 733,958 residents.”