Tomasz Malinowski

During his 2020 re-election campaign, Malinowski faced death threats after the National Republican Congressional Committee aired false ads accusing him of lobbying to protect sexual predators when he worked for Human Rights Watch.

When he took office in January 2019, he became the first Democrat to represent the 7th and its predecessors since 1961.

In the June 5, 2018, Democratic primary election, Malinowski defeated social worker Peter Jacob and lawyer Goutam Jois, receiving 66.8% of the vote and winning all counties in the district.

On October 2, 2017, Malinowski announced his candidacy for Congress in New Jersey's 7th congressional district in the 2018 midterm elections. He decided to run for Congress after the 2016 election of Donald Trump, which he saw as an indication that America was in "deep trouble." Malinowski also cited what he called the Trump administration's "effort to take down the Affordable Care Act with no viable replacement. It was the Muslim ban, and attacks on immigrants, it was the tearing up of alliances and commitments internationally. It was the taking down of environmental protections, it was refusing to invest in infrastructure."

In July 2014, Malinowski was expelled by Bahrain's government after meeting with members of a Bahraini opposition group during a scheduled visit. The foreign ministry of Bahrain asserted that Malinowski's meeting was an improper intervention in the country's affairs but said the incident would not affect Bahrain–United States relations. The U.S. State Department released a statement of concern about the actions while Secretary of State John Kerry called Bahrain's actions unacceptable and contrary to diplomatic protocol. Malinowski returned to the country in December 2014 with the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs.

Malinowski was seen by some as a likely nominee for Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor but his previous registration as a lobbyist while at Human Rights Watch necessitated a waiver from the President. On July 8, 2013, during President Obama's second term, Malinowski was nominated to serve as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Malinowski testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 24, 2013, and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 2, 2014. According to columnist Jennifer Rubin, Malinowski was praised in 2014 by leaders from both parties for his defense of human rights and his work toward ending torture.

From 2001 to 2013, Malinowski was a lobbyist for Human Rights Watch. In this position, he advocated for the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Malinowski also opposed the United States supplying Israel with cluster munitions because of their misuse in Lebanon and asked then-Senator Hillary Clinton to not support Israel's construction of a wall in the occupied West Bank.

Malinowski began his government career as a special assistant for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan in 1988. After attending Oxford, Malinowski worked for the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna, Austria, and later as a research assistant for the Ford Foundation in 1993. From 1994 to 1998, Malinowski was a speechwriter for secretaries of state Warren Christopher and Madeleine Albright, as well as a member of the Policy Planning Staff at the Department of State. From 1998 to 2001, Malinowski served as senior director on the National Security Council at the White House, where he oversaw the drafting of President Bill Clinton's foreign policy speeches and strategic communications efforts around the world.

Malinowski was born in Słupsk, Poland, and lived in Brwinów until he left the country at the age of six with his mother, Joanna, who married Blair Clark. He was raised in Princeton, New Jersey, and graduated from Princeton High School in 1983, where he wrote for the school newspaper The Tower and was an intern in the office of Senator Bill Bradley. Malinowski received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1987 and a Master of Philosophy from St Antony's College, Oxford, in 1991, where he was a Rhodes Scholar.

Malinowski's stepfather Blair Clark was a journalist. Clark's sister was Anne Martindell, a member of the New Jersey State Senate (1974–1977) and a United States ambassador to New Zealand (1979–1981).

Tomasz P. Malinowski (/ˌ m æ l ɪ ˈ n aʊ s k iː / ; born September 23, 1965) is an American politician and diplomat who is the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 7th congressional district. A Democrat, he previously served as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor in the Obama administration. Malinowski was first elected in 2018, defeating Republican incumbent Leonard Lance. He was re-elected in 2020 by a much narrower margin against New Jersey state Senate minority leader Tom Kean Jr.