Rachel Peace

The summer before college, Rachel Peace earned $8 an hour caring for toddlers at an Ocean County daycare.¹ Today, she is a single mother raising a young son and has publicly described herself as a domestic violence survivor.¹ She grew up in Brick Township and now lives in Wall Township.²

Peace graduated from Brick Memorial High School in 2010 and earned a public relations degree at Hofstra in 2014, with minors in drama and sociology.¹ She founded Hyperfocused Communications, a public relations and marketing consultancy.¹ Her business works primarily with nonprofits on media relations, content strategy and public discussion of their work.²

This is her first campaign for political office, following activism around healthcare, food assistance and rising housing costs.² She says her family receives health coverage through NJ FamilyCare.¹ Her campaign emphasizes making it possible for people to see a doctor when they are sick.²

Peace supports restoring enhanced Affordable Care Act premium assistance, expanding Medicaid and broadening access to rental and childcare support.¹ She also favors a higher living wage and housing down payment assistance.¹ She wants federal support for cash assistance during pregnancy and a baby's first year, pointing to the Rx Kids pilot.¹ Her campaign says it does not accept corporate PAC contributions.³ She challenges Republican Chris Smith, who first won the seat in 1980.²