Where the NJ delegation stands on Kim for Senate

Apr 12, 2024

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Good Friday morning!

It’s been almost three weeks since first lady Tammy Murphy ended her bid for Senate, practically handing the Democratic nomination — and likely the Senate seat — to Congressmember Andy Kim.

Murphy’s exit shook up New Jersey politics. But many of Kim’s fellow Democratic delegation members are acting like nothing happened at all.

Things have been awkward for the New Jerseyans on Capitol Hill, to say the least. Kim was the first to jump into the race to unseat indicted Sen. Bob Menendez; almost all of his House colleagues ultimately backed Murphy, despite working with Kim for years. That’s not including Rep. Rob Menendez, who has stood by his father.

And now, Kim is the frontrunner in the race — even if some Democratic members aren’t acknowledging it.

Three Democratic House members quickly made the endorsement switch the day after Murphy dropped out. Rep. Mikie Sherrill was the first, saying she was “grateful” for Murphy’s work on reproductive freedom but now she looks forward to working with Kim to “keep New Jersey blue.” Rep. Josh Gottheimer made his announcement shortly after, saying: “Now is the time to come together as a unified party.”

And the day ended with a statement from Rep. Bill Pascrell, who perhaps summed it up the best: “Some people say it's better to be late to a great party than to miss it entirely.”

It seems like the rest of the New Jersey delegation is either showing up to the party fashionably late or not at all. It’s been crickets since March 25, the day after Murphy dropped out.

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, the only New Jersey House member to stay neutral in the race, said she is still staying out of it. Even after Murphy dropped out, she told Playbook she has no plans to endorse.

That leaves a few holdouts. Reps. Donald Norcross, Frank Pallone and Donald Payne Jr. have yet to formally change their endorsements from Murphy to Kim.

Playbook was unable to reach the three holdouts. Norcross and Pallone’s campaign teams did not respond to requests for comment. Payne’s campaign team was unable to be reached, and Payne was in the hospital after experiencing a “cardiac episode.”

All three backed Murphy almost immediately after she announced her candidacy. Norcross, Pallone and Payne all endorsed Murphy on the same day.

Maybe there's reason they’ve been quiet. In Norcross’ home turf of Camden County, the county Democratic committee is the only one appealing a judge’s order to drop the so-called county line in the Democratic primary following a lawsuit led by Kim. And Pallone has been a Murphy loyalist who represents the couple's district in Monmouth County.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Brad Pitt is playing Chris Christie? It should be a fat guy playing that role. Chris Christie didn’t eat 10,000 Jersey Mike’s subs just to be played by a Hollywood pretty boy. That’s offensive, and I for one will not stand for it — although that’s mostly due to cardiovascular disease.” — Peter Griffin, of “Family Guy,” in Wednesday night’s episode about Brad Pitt playing the former governor in a Christie biopic. h/t to Monmouth University pollster Patrick Murray.

WHERE’S MURPHY? — Nothing public.

PROGRAMMING NOTE — Matt’s back Monday. Thanks for putting up with us.

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WHAT TRENTON MADE

BETTER CALL KATYAL — Why Is a Pro-Democracy Beltway Hero Defending Machine Politics in New Jersey? by POLITICO’s Michael Schaffer: In 49 of the 50 states, Neal Katyal is known as a stalwart defender of democracy. And then there’s New Jersey. In the Garden State, Katyal — the Beltway-famous legal combatant against Trump-era assaults on democratic norms — has thrown himself into a very different legal battle: He’s working to restore a voting rule that enables machine politics bosses to stack the ballot against anyone they don't favor. A federal judge last month declared the system unconstitutional for the upcoming primary. Now Katyal’s admirers say they’re enraged by their erstwhile ally’s efforts to snatch away their victory. “We are all amazed and disappointed and all the related words,” said Yael Niv of the Good Government Coalition of New Jersey. “He’s on the wrong side of history.”

PAYING PEOPLE TO TELL YOU HOW TO BUDGET — “NJ Transit contract to cut $300M in costs hidden from public before 15% fare hike vote,” by NorthJersey.com’s Colleen Wilson: “The central goal of a consultant hired to do a restructuring analysis of NJ Transit was to identify about $300 million in cuts for the coming fiscal year and another $300 million the year after that, according to a document obtained Wednesday by NorthJersey.com. This information was withheld from the public until a request-for-quotes document was emailed to NorthJersey.com at 11 a.m. on Wednesday — more than two months after a public information request was filed, and about 40 minutes before the agency’s board voted unanimously to approve a controversial fare hike of 15% starting July 1, with additional 3% hikes each year after that.”

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NOW THAT’S FUNNY — An anti-Trump Republican thinks he can win NJ governor’s race by ‘10 points,’ by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: State Sen. Jon Bramnick is not the typical Trump-era Republican. He has vowed not to vote for the former president in the 2024 presidential election, describes himself a “ pro-choice Republican” and has even hosted Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy at a cocktail party in his backyard. But it’s that independent streak — combined with his support for what he describes as traditional Republican values — that Bramnick says can propel him to the New Jersey governor’s office in 2025. And he thinks he can win it by 10 points.

BALLOT MAYHEM — State judge denies Burlington GOP request to restore county line this June, by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: State Superior Court Judge John Harrington on Thursday denied a preliminary injunction request from the Burlington County Republican Committee seeking to restore the county line primary ballot design for this year’s primary election. Harrington said he made his ruling because the plaintiffs in the case — the Burlington County Republican Committee — have not shown a “likelihood of success at a trial.” Denying the request means that the office-block ballot design, where candidates are grouped together by the office they are seeking, will likely stand for this year’s GOP primary in Burlington County — unless Thursday’s ruling is successfully appealed.

— “Guv 2025 Poll Shows Sherrill Trouncing Other Dems”

— “Dramatic swings in state aid to schools should abate in future years, education chief says”

— “Thousands miss out on valuable NJ tax break”

— "Op-Ed: Here’s a major downside risk of Murphy’s proposed corporate tax surcharge"

LAW AND ORDER

TRIAL TWOFER — Menendez trial still set for May, but wife’s will be delayed, by POLITICO’s Ry Rivard: Sen. Bob Menendez’s bribery trial will start in May — without his wife. A federal judge on Thursday refused to delay the trial because of health issues facing Nadine Menendez, who asked to postpone the trial because of an unspecified “serious medical condition.” The New Jersey Democrat and his wife face bribery and extortion charges stemming from his relationship with three New Jersey businesspeople, who are also co-defendants. While federal prosecutors were open to a delay so they didn’t have to try their case twice, the senator’s defense team urged the judge to keep the May 6 start date for the trial.

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LOCAL

VOTE DOXXING — “Judge might force six voters to reveal votes in razor-tight Atlantic Highlands mayor race,” by the Asbury Park Press’ Jerry Carino: “Six ballots from November’s razor-thin Atlantic Highlands mayoral election were ruled illegal by a judge Wednesday, adding a new twist to the legal saga that has engulfed the office and, by proxy, the borough. After examining candidate challenges of 15 ballots that were cast in an election that was decided by five votes, Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Mara Zazzali-Hogan ruled that, based on their residences, the ballots of Lindsay Helmus, Michael Lucas, Derek Lucas, Michelle Moon, Steven Johnson and Abigail Hofman were improperly accepted.”

MUST BE THOSE WINDMILLS NOT GETTING BUILT — “Dead whale on New Jersey's Long Beach Island is first of the year, stranding group says,” by AP’s Wayne Parry: “A dead humpback whale that washed ashore on New Jersey's Long Beach Island on Thursday was the first such death in the state this year, according to a marine mammal rescue group. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center said it received a call at 6:45 a.m. reporting a dead humpback whale in the surf in Long Beach Township. It said the animal was 20 to 30 feet (6-9 meters) long, but did not release further information, including whether there were any outward signs of injury or illness. The center's web site said the state's first whale death of the year follows 14 whale deaths in New Jersey during 2023.”

TOM TOM CLUB — “FIRST REPORT: Toms River to Form Civilian Patrol Unit Under Auspices of TRPD,” by The Lakewood Scoop: “The Toms River community will be forming a civilian patrol unit, TLS has confirmed. The Toms River Civilian Patrol unit will be under the auspices of the Toms River Police Department. The formation of this unit comes after weeks of armed robberies and burglaries throughout the Township.”

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EVERYTHING ELSE

WEIRD NJ — “Fireball lights up New Jersey night sky days after eclipse, earthquake,” by the New York Post’s Patrick Reilly: “A massive fireball lit up the sky across New Jersey early Wednesday morning in what has already been a bizarre week of natural phenomena in the Garden State and surrounding area, including an earthquake and the solar eclipse. An apparent meteor falling to earth created a brilliant streak of light, with residents in several New Jersey towns — as well as some parts of Connecticut, New York and Pennsylvania — reporting the spectacle to the American Meteor Society. Security camera video posted on Facebook by Linda Price Heines from her home in Wall Township, New Jersey shows the flash fly across the sky within just a couple of seconds at 3:43 a.m.”

UNITED VAN LINES HAD HER FILL OUT A SURVEY: “I'm a lifelong Jersey girl choosing to retire in South Carolina. It's where my adult daughter is planning to live — and it's cheaper,” as told to Business Insider’s Jordan Pandy: “I started to seriously look to move to Charleston in the fall of 2023. Before that, my husband and I would talk about it and drive to different areas. Then we figured out areas we liked. It's a hard decision to make. You just say to yourself, 'My husband and I are entering the second phase and moving toward retirement eventually. I'm an insurance agency manager. I'm too young to retire right now, but is New Jersey where I want to eventually be?' And the answer was no.”

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CORRECTION: Thursday's Playbook included an early version of an article with an incorrect figure of the looming NJ Transit budget gap. It is $900 million.

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