In recent months, the Senate Democratic primary in New Jersey has intensified. Rep. Andy Kim and New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy have been campaigning aggressively, picking up endorsements, and competing in local county conventions. But while their race has unfolded, an important question has lingered in the background:
What about the incumbent senator who holds the seat Kim and Murphy are pursuing?
Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez, who’s been indicted several times in recent months on corruption charges, has seen his support in the Garden State collapse, but the longtime lawmaker nevertheless left open the possibility that he’d at least try to seek a fourth term in the fall. As a filing deadline approached, the political world was left guessing about what the incumbent would do.
Late yesterday, Menendez finally answered the question — or least one of the questions, that is. NBC News reported:
Menendez said in a nine-minute video announcement, which was posted and then quickly taken down Thursday afternoon, that he will not be running for re-election as a Democrat ahead of Monday’s primary filing deadline. … Menendez, who was first elected in 2006, has denied any wrongdoing in the case, which has him facing 18 charges for allegedly obstructing justice and taking bribes in the form of cash, gold bars, a luxury car and more, and that he used his power to benefit Egypt.
So, that’s that? Menendez will focus on his legal defense rather than his re-election plans?
It’s not quite that simple. In his announcement video, the Democratic senator said he remains “hopeful” that he’ll be exonerated over the summer — as in, this summer, which is just a few months away — at which point he’d be able to pursue a candidacy “as an independent Democrat in the general election.”
Or put another way, Menendez envisions a scenario in which all of the felony counts — the latest of which were filed earlier this month — evaporate fairly quickly, at which point he’d compete in a three-way contest against his own party’s nominee and a Republican candidate. To pull this off, the incumbent would need to gather 800 signatures by June 4 to qualify for the ballot as an independent. In the meantime, Menendez expects to remain a senator in good standing, despite the fact that 31 current senators — all Democrats — have called on the New Jersey lawmaker to resign, and Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has pushed for Menendez’s expulsion. All of which is to say, the incumbent has resolved part of the mystery about his plans for the near future, but the larger saga is far from over.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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