Garrett unsuccessfully challenged incumbent Congresswoman Marge Roukema in the 1998 and 2000 Republican primaries, on both occasions running well to the right of the moderate Roukema. In 2002, Roukema retired and Garrett won a contested five-way primary with 46% of the vote over State Assemblyman David C. Russo and State Senator Gerald Cardinale. Of the three major candidates, Garrett was the only one from the more rural western portion of the district, while Russo and Cardinale were both from Bergen County. Russo and Cardinale split the Bergen County vote, while Garrett dominated his base in the western portion of the district.