New Jersey Democratic House candidate Rebecca Bennett campaigned this week alongside Linden, N.J., Mayor Derek Armstead, a Democrat who has been accused of antisemitic discrimination in an ongoing lawsuit, at an event that also featured House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).

But her opponent, Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), has also been photographed alongside Armstead on multiple occasions, including at least once since the lawsuit containing the antisemitism allegations was filed, at an event related to an energy and chemical manufacturing facility in Linden that appears to have been organized by a third party.

Based on photos from the Bennett campaign event, held in Linden, Bennett, Armstead and Jeffries delivered remarks. Bennett is favored against Kean in next month’s election, according to the Cook Political Report, and a top GOP super PAC canceled ad reservations in the district this week.

As part of the ongoing suit, Armstead has been accused of discrimination against Jews in hiring for the local school district, and was, according to the lawsuit, recorded making multiple antisemitic comments about the growing local Orthodox Jewish population.

“Rebecca welcomed Democratic Leader Jeffries to Linden to hear directly from members of the community about lowering the cost of living, addressing key issues like flooding, and protecting New Jerseyans’ constitutional rights,” Carly Jones, a spokesperson for Bennett, said in a statement. “She absolutely condemns antisemitism and in Congress will work across the aisle to fight back against antisemitism and hate.”

A spokesperson for Jeffries brushed off Armstead’s appearance as insignificant, and turned his criticism toward Kean.

“The people of Northern New Jersey deserve real representation that will fight to lower the high cost of living and end corruption in Washington. That’s exactly what Rebecca Bennett will provide. Tom Kean Jr. has frequently appeared in public with Mayor Armstead, making this a non-story,” Jeffries spokesperson Justin Chermol said.

“His desperate campaign is failing, as evidenced by the recent House Republican decision to pull millions in funding support,” Chermol continued. “Rebecca Bennett will be a strong voice against antisemitism and all other forms of hatred. The track record of Leader Jeffries speaks for itself.”

A spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee did not address Kean’s own history with Armstead, but attacked Bennett and a third-party candidate running on an explicitly anti-Israel platform in a statement.

“Radical Democrat Rebecca Bennett and blatantly anti-Israel Seamus O’Toole [who is also running] cannot be trusted to fight for our Middle East ally. Tom Kean Jr. is the clear choice in this race,” NRCC spokesperson Maureen O’Toole said.

The lawsuit alleges that, in a discussion about hiring for the school system, Armstead said that he wanted to “keep our community [from] being taken over by guys with big hats and curls,” referring to the Orthodox Jewish community. The recordings cited in the lawsuit were reviewed and reported by NJ.com.

“I’m just keeping it real. And if people don’t understand that, you know, we are really trying to save our community here,” Armstead continued.

In further comments, he complained that another prospective employee had “sold his house to the guys with the big hats and the curls too. So, you know, everybody’s undermining the progress we’re trying to make here in town.”

Armstead has denied the conversation in the recording and called the allegations “a whole bunch of hogwash” manufactured by a disgruntled individual who was fired from his job. “Everyone is welcome here in Linden. It’s our strength,” he told NJ.com. “I don’t care if you’re Jewish, Black, white or Latino. We get along well in Linden.”

While Armstead has been mayor, Linden has also been accused of undertaking a campaign of antisemitic discrimination and harassment aimed at preventing the growth of the local Orthodox community through zoning laws and other measures.

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) urged the Department of Justice and New Jersey State Attorney General to investigate the city for alleged rampant violations of law and the state and U.S. Constitution.

Bennett has pledged to combat antisemitism as a member of Congress, describing the issue in an interview with Jewish Insider as something that she feels “very strongly about.”

She has repeatedly referenced a conversation with a mother who was worried about sending her children to a Holocaust museum following the Capital Jewish Museum shooting last year, calling that state of affairs “unacceptable.”

Kean has supported various efforts to combat antisemitism while he’s been a member of the House, including cosponsoring legislation to pull federal funding from college campuses that allow antisemitic events on their campuses and several efforts to address antisemitism internationally.