Tammy Murphy Ends Campaign for US Senate 

In a move that shocked political observers throughout the Garden State, Tammy Murphy took to social media on Sunday to announce she is dropping out of the race to succeed Senator Bob Menendez in the US Senate. That clears the way for insurgent Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) who is now the strong favorite to win the Democratic nomination in June.

3.25 24 Special Edition ITL: Tammy Murphy Ends Campaign for US Senate 

In a move that shocked political observers throughout the Garden State, Tammy Murphy took to social media on Sunday to announce she is dropping out of the race to succeed Senator Bob Menendez in the US Senate. That clears the way for insurgent Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) who is now the strong favorite to win the Democratic nomination in June. 

Murphy did not endorse Kim, however, she did call for party unity in her message to supporters. 

Murphy made the decision on Saturday evening after a discussion with her family – including her husband, Governor Phil Murphy – and political advisors. The conclusion was that she had an uphill battle to win the June 4 primary, despite a significant fundraising advantage and her many party endorsements in the state’s largest counties.

Murphy concluded that Kim’s advantages – his sizable share of county lines, his superior polling results, and her challenges to build an urban voter turnout operation before vote-by-mail ballots begin going out next month – left her with a narrow path to victory. 

Murphy’s withdrawal comes one day before New Jersey’s filing deadline, and before U.S. District Court Judge Zahid Quraishi rules in a lawsuit filed by Kim and others to abolish organization lines, the unique New Jersey system that gives party-endorsed candidates preferential ballot placement.

With Murphy out, there are three other Democrats left in the Senate race, all considered long-shots: former Newark school board member Lawrence Hamm, activist Patricia Campos-Medina, and newcomer Patrick Merrill. Republicans are also hosting a competitive primary, with hotelier Curtis Bashaw, Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner, and former News 12 New Jersey reporter Alex Zdan looking like the top candidates.

Menendez, the three-term incumbent, said last week that he would not run in the Democratic primary, but that he might seek re-election as an independent in the fall if he’s able to dispense with the indictments that have derailed his political career.