A Democratic New Jersey congressman on Saturday announced a primary challenge to Senator Bob Menendez following the latter’s indictment on federal corruption charges.
Representative Andy Kim said he would compete for the incumbent’s seat in the state’s Democratic primary ahead of the 2024 election.
“After calls to resign, Senator Menendez said ‘I am not going anywhere.’ As a result, I feel compelled to run against him,” Kim said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “Not something I expected to do, but NJ deserves better. We cannot jeopardize the Senate or compromise our integrity.”
Kim was one of multiple lawmakers who urged Menendez to resign amid the scandal, in which he, his wife, and two other business associates were accused by federal prosecutors Friday of being in an influence-peddling scheme involving Egypt. The representative’s X account bio now reads: “Running to represent New Jersey in the United States Senate. Dad to two troublemakers. Whether you vote for me or not, I work for you.”
Led by Southern District of New York attorney Damian Williams, in June 2022, investigators conducted a search of Menendez’s residence in New Jersey and found $100,000 worth of gold bars, nearly half a million dollars in cash, “much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe,” and a brand new Mercedes-Benz C-300 convertible.
Although he so far has refused to abandon his Senate senate, Menendez temporarily stepped down from his position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“Those who believe in justice believe in innocence until proven guilty. I intend to continue to fight for the people of New Jersey with the same success I’ve had for the past five decades,” Menendez said Friday. “This is the same record of success these very same leaders have lauded all along. It is not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat. I am not going anywhere.”
Other Democratic colleagues of Menendez in the Senate as well as in his home state have demanded that he step down. New Jersey governor Phil Murphy said in a statement that the allegations were “deeply disturbing” and merit Menendez’s immediate resignation before the case goes to court.