U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey who is now on trial in New York on federal bribery accusations, has filed for reelection as an independent candidate.
Menendez, 70, announced this year that he would not seek the Democratic candidacy for a fourth term, and on Monday he submitted paperwork with the state to run as an independent on the ballot. He had previously stated that an independent campaign for office was possible.
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When asked on his way into court Monday if he was changing political parties, Menendez answered in Spanish, “No, being independent doesn’t mean I’m changing.”
Later Monday, Menendez told reporters who inquired about his candidacy that he had done a lot for the state of New Jersey, particularly during the pandemic and following Superstorm Sandy.
In paperwork filed with the state, Menendez identified his party as “Menendez for Senate.”
The political stakes are high, considering the Democrats’ thin control of the Senate, where New Jersey is typically safe Democratic territory. It’s unclear how much support Menendez could draw away from U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, who is in a strong position to win the Democratic primary, which ends Tuesday. The Republican Party has not won a United States Senate race in the state since 1972.
Kim, a three-term congressman from the 3rd District, claimed Menendez was running for himself, not the people.
“Americans are fed up with politicians putting their own personal benefit ahead of what’s right for the country,” Kim stated.
Federal prosecutors in New York last year charged Menendez, his wife Nadine, and three business colleagues with conducting a scam in which Menendez promised to use his office to assist the businessmen in exchange for gold bars, cash, a mortgage payment on his wife’s home, and a luxury car. The Menedezes, as well as two of their business acquaintances, have pleaded not guilty. A third defendant pleaded guilty and promised to testify.
Prosecutors have argued in court that Menendez sought to sell his office in order to enrich himself by helping business associate Wael Hana obtain a lucrative monopoly on certifying meat exports to Egypt as meeting Islamic guidelines and assisting Fred Daibes with investments linked to a member of the Qatari royal family.
Menendez has denied there was a corrupt plan. His counsel claimed that his actions constituted diplomacy and advocacy for constituents. The gold bars belonged to his wife, and the cash lying around his house was a long-standing habit coming from his parents’ flight from Communist Cuba, according to his attorney.
Daibes and Hana are on trial with Menendez. According to the senator, Nadine Menendez is undergoing treatment for breast cancer and will face trial later this summer.
Menendez has been in elected office for the most of his life, beginning with the Union City, New Jersey, school board just two years after graduating from high school. Since then, the Legislature has elected him as a United States Representative and, in 2006, as a Senator.
He survived politically after another federal trial, this time in New Jersey, on charges of using his office to assist a friend in defrauding Medicare in 2017. It ended with a deadlocked jury, so prosecutors declined to hold another trial. The state’s Democratic leadership’s support helped Menendez win reelection in 2018.
However, his political prospects changed after the September 2023 indictment, when allies across the state, including Gov. Phil Murphy and the Senate, demanded his resignation.
Menendez vowed to fight the charges and, as before, promised to stick around. Menendez, meanwhile, did not appear on the ballot for Tuesday’s primary. By filing as an independent, he hopes to run in November instead.
Curtis Bashaw and Christine Serrano Glassner, both Republican candidates, have received the most attention. Bashaw, a hotel developer from southern New Jersey, has received strong county party support, while Serrano Glassner has former President Donald Trump’s endorsement.
Sen. Steve Daines, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, stated that Menendez’s choice “makes that race a little more interesting.”
Democrats said they are optimistic their party will maintain control of the seat.
When questioned about the impact of Menendez’s decision on the election, Sen. Gary Peters, chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said he hadn’t heard about it. “We are going to win.” A Democrat will win.
