It’s been a tumultuous year for New Jersey’s political establishment. Embattled Sen. Bob Menendez’s indictment opened up an opportunity for Democratic Rep. Andy Kim, who launched a Senate campaign as the insurgent candidate but is now on a glide path to the upper chamber after Gov. Phil Murphy’s wife, Tammy Murphy, abruptly ended her campaign.
Then, as a result of a lawsuit brought by Kim, a federal judge struck down New Jersey’s longstanding primary ballot design, a “county line” system that allowed county party organizations to elevate their preferred candidates.
The end of the county line system and the Menendez scandal have triggered competitive primaries in two congressional districts: the contest to replace Kim in South Jersey’s 3rd District, and Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla’s primary challenge to freshman Rep. Rob Menendez — the senator’s son — in North Jersey’s 8th District. Both contests on June 4 will test the strength of New Jersey’s political establishment after a chaotic year.
NJ-03: OPEN (Kim) (D) - South central: Burlington, Hamilton, FreeholdSolid Democrat. Five candidates are running for the Democratic nomination to
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