- Tammy Murphy announced Wednesday that she will run for the U.S. Senate in 2024
- She is the wife of New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Murphy
- The move poses a potential challenge to Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez, who has been indicted on a slew of bribery and corruption charges.
The wife of New Jersey’s Democratic governor announced Wednesday that she will run for the U.S. Senate next year, mounting a challenge against Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez, who has been indicted on a slew of bribery and corruption charges.
Tammy Murphy, wife of Governor Phil Murphy, launched her campaign with a video about X highlighting her work on maternal and infant mortality and climate change while serving as New Jersey’s first lady.
But she also delivered a subtle blow to Menendez, who was accused of taking bribes from three New Jersey businessmen in the form of cash, gold bars and a luxury car, as well as being an unregistered foreign agent on behalf of Egypt.
“Right now, Washington is filled with too many people who are more interested in getting rich or appearing on screen than in getting things done for you,” Murphy said in the video, as an image of Menendez flashed on the screen.
Menendez has yet to say whether he will run for re-election in 2024, but after his indictment he said he was “not going anywhere.”
Tammy Murphy, the wife of Democratic New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, announced Wednesday that she would seek the U.S. Senate seat currently belonging to indicted Democratic Senator Bob Menendez.
The New Jersey first lady announced her bid for X on Wednesday with a video message highlighting her work on maternal and infant mortality and climate change
Democratic Rep. Andy Kim previously said he planned to seek the Senate seat, a day after the new criminal charges against Menendez were announced.
On the Republican side, Mendham, New Jersey Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner plans to enter the race.
New Jersey has never elected a female U.S. senator.
Murphy, 58, is a prominent figure in the state alongside husband Phil, who was first elected in 2017 and won a close race for re-election in 2021 against Republican Jack Ciatarelli.
Phil Murphy was the first governor of New Jersey to win a second term since 1977.
His term is limited, including the last two years of his governorship, during the period when his wife is running for office.
In her opening speech, she talked about her career as a successful businesswoman – she met Phil while they were both working for Goldman Sachs – and becoming a mother.
Murphy’s video message also took aim at her potential rival, Democratic Senator Bob Menendez (left), photographed with his wife Nadine (right), who has been indicted on a number of corruption and bribery charges.
The couple has four children.
“And when I was pregnant, and even after they were born, I worried about a million things, as all mothers do, but I never worried about whether I would survive the birth or whether my babies would get the care they needed. I didn’t have to,” Murphy said. “The money in our family’s bank account and, honestly, the color of my skin meant I could get the best care possible.
‘But that is not the case for many women. So when I got here, I realized I had a platform to help moms who aren’t nearly as happy as I am,” she said, noting how women and babies in New Jersey were dying at a higher rate compared to most states in the USA land “almost exclusively in our black and brown communities.”
Murphy also highlighted her work as first lady fighting and educating young people about climate change.
Murphy, a Virginia native, is also a former Republican and changed her voter registration to Democrat before her husband became governor for the first time.
While her video affected Menendez, Republican senators were also called out with flashing images of Republican Sens. Josh Hawley and Marsha Blackburn as she warned voters about “extreme politicians who want to defund Planned Parenthood and ban abortion in all fifty states, including New Jersey . ‘