WASHINGTON — Senator Bob MenendezDNJ will file for re-election to the Senate as an independent on Monday, according to two sources with direct knowledge of his plans.
NBC News previously reported that he was a three-term senator had collected enough signatures to be an independent candidate for another term in the Senate like him is on trial on federal bribery charges accusations. His filing comes a day before the state’s deadline for independent candidates, giving him fewer signatures to collect and still get a ballot; The deadline to run as a Democrat has long passed.
New Jersey Globe first informed Menendez plans to file a plea Monday.
Menendez’s decision to run for re-election also allows him to continue raising campaign funds and spending on legal fees amid an ongoing corruption trial. Menendez has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.
Menendez’s appeal also comes ahead of the state’s primary election, in which Rep. Andy Kim is leading the Democratic nomination for his seat. Who is there? warned before As an independent candidate, Menendez could put the deep blue state up for grabs in November, he said.
Also Tuesday, the senator’s son, Democratic Republican Rob Menendez, faces a competitive race against Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla in the 8th District.
There is a pro-Bhalla foreign group called America’s Promise PAC launched a TV ad Tying Rob Menendez to his father’s trial, a narrator says, “They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. So it’s no surprise that Rob Menendez is defending his father’s corruption,” later adding that the congressman is “rotten to the core.” (Rob Menendez has not been charged with any impropriety.)