ON THE CD-11 CAMPAIGN TRAIL - Bloomfield and Roseland are only 13 miles apart from each other.

But on Tuesday night, that gap was much wider than a short car ride - politically speaking, that is.

The evening of CD-11 campaigning began with Rep. Analilia Mejia telling about 90 people in Bloomfield township hall that her job is to speak the truth. To that end, she said:

"I have been to Delaney Hall and I am telling you that we are mistreating people."

Mejia, who got to Congress after winning a special election in April, said detainees are often denied medical care. No matter the reason for the detention, it "should not be a death sentence," she said.

A few miles to the west and a bit later, Joe Hathaway, the Republican challenging Mejia, had his own event - a town hall at the Roseland VFW.

Summing up, he said his hope is that ...

"Common sense, normal people in this district on either side of the aisle stand up when we see these elected officials, and these candidates, pushing radical extremism, pushing socialist ideas."

The comments from both candidates, brief as they are, crystallize the race in CD-11, which ranges over parts of Essex, Passaic and Morris counties.

In some ways, this does not seem like a fair fight.

Mejia beat Hathaway in the April special election by 20 points and the district has about 67,000 more registered Dems than Republicans.

Hathaway's point is that registration aside, the suburban district is not necessarily a hotbed of radical left politics, After all, he noted on Tuesday, the district for years was represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen. He was an aristocratic sort with family ties dating back to the Revolution.

Hathaway told about 50 people that he sees the main function of a congressman to work for the benefit of the district. That means seeking funds for flood relief, road improvements and the like. It sure ain't sexy, but it's important.

And as a councilman in Randolph, he knows how to do that. Mejia, he says, is more interested in spreading the gospel of left wing socialism.

It is true that at her events, Mejia does not normally talk about securing federal money to fix a water pump.

Her focus, though,  is broader than that.

On this night in Bloomfield, she talked about the threat posed by AI. She has said a moratorium is needed to give time for the government to come up with guidelines.

No, she is not a Luddite, she said. But as of now, tech companies are running amok and are in line to determine the future.

And that, Mejia said, is something she is not ready to accept.

It was basically a supportive crowd, but one man challenged her on border security. She was asked if she endorses "open borders."

No, she doesn't.

At the same time, Mejia spoke of her Delaney Hall visits and how U.S. immigration policy over the years often has been discriminatory by design.

Back in Roseland, Hathaway was asked about ICE after his presentation. He said he supports removing "the worst of the worse," but that all individuals, even those detained by ICE, must be treated humanely.

As for the president, Hathaway reiterated that he will disagree with Donald Trump when his policies would hurt the district. He has been critical of Trump's failed attempt to stop the Gateway tunnel project.

Of course, Trump's shadow covers a lot of ground these days.

At Mejia's event, a sign behind her made clear the president's impact - and also the problem for all Republicans.

It ridiculed the president for calling affordability "a hoax," and calculated that the war in Iran has cost an average CD-11 resident $653 more for gas.