New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez leaves Manhattan federal court after jury selection for his trial in New York on May 14, 2024.
Stefan Jeremiah/AP
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Stefan Jeremiah/AP
TRENTON, N.J. — Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, who is on trial in New York on federal bribery charges, has filed to run for re-election as an independent candidate.
Menendez, 70, who said this year he would not seek the Democratic nomination for a fourth term, filed paperwork with the state on Monday to launch an independent ballot bid. He has previously said running for office independently is possible.
Asked in court on Monday if he wanted to change parties, Menéndez said in Spanish: “No, independence does not mean I want to change.”
Asked by reporters late Monday about his run, Menendez told reporters he’s done a lot for New Jersey, especially during the pandemic and in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.
Menendez lists his party as “Menendez in the Senate” in his filings with the state.
The political stakes are high given Democrats’ limited control of the Senate, and New Jersey is usually safely in Democratic hands. It’s unclear how much support Menendez can garner from U.S. Rep. Andy King, who is well-positioned to win the Democratic primary that ends Tuesday. Republicans have not won a U.S. Senate election in the state since 1972.
King, a three-term congressman from the 3rd District, said Menendez is running for himself, not the public.
“Americans are tired of politicians putting their personal interests ahead of the national interest,” King said.
Menendez, his wife, Nadine, and three business partners were charged last year by federal prosecutors in New York with running a scheme in which Menendez promised to use his office to help businessmen in exchange for gold bullion, cash and mortgage loans. house and a luxury car. The Menendezes and two business partners have pleaded not guilty. A third person admitted guilt and agreed to testify.
In court, prosecutors argued that Menendez was trying to sell his office to enrich himself and help business partner Wael Hana gain a lucrative monopoly on proving that meat exports to Egypt complied with Islamic guidelines. , and assisted Fred Daibes with investments related to a member of Qatar.
Menendez denies any corruption scheme. His lawyers said his actions constituted diplomacy and work on behalf of his constituents. The gold bars belonged to his wife and the cash stored around his house was a long-standing habit of his parents who fled communist Cuba, according to his lawyers.
Debis and Harner were tried alongside Menendez. Nadine Menendez is undergoing treatment for breast cancer and is expected to go on trial later this summer, the senator said.
Menendez has held elected public office most of his life, serving on the Union City, New Jersey school board just two years out of high school. He has since been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and served in the Legislature, and in 2006 he was elected to the U.S. Senate.
In 2017, he politically survived another federal trial — that one in New Jersey, where he was accused of using his office to help a friend defraud Medicare. Another trial is held. In 2018, Menendez won re-election with the support of the state’s Democratic establishment.
But his political fortunes turned after he was indicted in September 2023, and allies across the state, including Gov. Phil Murphy, as well as the Senate, called for his resignation.
Menendez vowed to overturn the charges against him and, like last time, pledged to stay. But Menendez did not appear on Tuesday’s primary ballot. By filing as an independent, he is targeting November.
The two Republican candidates, Curtis Bashaw and Christine Serrano Glassner, are getting the most attention. Bashaw, a southern New Jersey hotel developer, won strong support from the county party, while Serrano Glasner received the backing of former President Donald Trump.
Sen. Steve Daines, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said Menendez’s decision “makes this race more interesting.”
Democrats say they are confident their party will retain control of the seat.
When a reporter asked Sen. Gary Peters, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, who had not yet heard about Menendez’s decision, what impact it would have on the race: “We’re going to win. Democrats will win.
