Rodney Frelinghuysen hasn’t been very visible since departing Congress in January, 2019. And that’s probably an understatement.

But periodically, the former 12-term congressman from Harding surfaces.

He attended a “celebration of life” last summer for Mary Pierson, a one time Republican Party stalwart from Netcong who passed away at 99. He also endorsed the candidacies of Assemblywoman Aura Dunn, who had been one of his aides, and former Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce.

And today, he backed Paul DeGroot, the Republican trying to win back Frelinghuysen’s old CD-11 seat for the GOP.

In a statement, Frelinghuysen asked “my former constituents and neighbors to vote for Paul on Nov. 8.”
Frelinghuysen incorporated DeGroot’s own mantra of being a “tough-as-nails” prosecutor who put away “violent gangs and corrupt officials.” DeGroot, Frelinghuysen said, will bring that same “vigor” to the House.

For his part, DeGroot praised Frelinghuysen as a “man of integrity who reached across the aisle to put good deeds into law.”

Politics has been very much of a family pastime for the Frelinghuysens. Family members have been active in public life since the country was formed.

As for Rodney, he served in Vietnam and was a freeholder and state assemblyman before getting elected to Congress following the retirement of Rep. Dean Gallo in 1994. Gallo, in fact, recommended Frelinghuysen for the job.

Frelinghuysen has not responded to an email request to elaborate on his endorsement.