Kim, Bashaw Win New Jersey Senate Primary Contests

Congressional candidate Curtis Bashaw greets his supporters during his watch party after winning the primary election in Cape May, N.J., on June 4, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

New Jersey voters have chosen Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) and Republican Hotelier and developer Curtis Bashaw to appear on the November general election ballot to fill the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.).

Mr. Kim’s victory was predicted and called soon after the polls closed. With 62 percent of Democratic votes counted, Mr. Kim led by 60 percentage points. Mr. Bashaw led by 18 percent with 53 percent of the Republican votes counted.

Mr. Menendez dropped out of the Democratic race in March because of his ongoing criminal case. He is currently on trial for charges including conspiracy, bribery, and obstruction of justice related to his alleged relationships with the governments of Egypt and Qatar. Mr. Menendez has denied any wrongdoing and asked voters to “hold judgement until justice takes place.”

In a March statement, he said if acquitted, he would still run for Senate in 2024 as an independent.

But on June 3, with his trial still ongoing and the day before the primary, Mr. Menendez filed nominating petitions with enough signatures to get on the ballot and seek a fourth term, this time as an independent. The deadline for filing as an independent is June 4.

“Everyone knows Bob Menendez isn’t running for New Jersey families,” Mr. Kim said on social media. “He’s running for himself. People are fed up with politicians putting their own personal benefit ahead of what’s right for the country. It’s beyond time for change. I’m stepping up to restore integrity back to the Senate.”

The Epoch Times asked Mr. Menendez’s campaign for a comment.

For much of the primary season, it appeared this would be an open Senate seat. Traditionally, open seats, where there is no incumbent candidate, offer the best opportunity for party power shifts, and Republicans saw that chance here, perhaps bolstered by former President Donald Trump’s May 11 rally at the Jersey Shore that brought out carloads of supporters in the solidly Democrat state.

It has been 52 years since New Jersey elected a Republican to the Senate. Voters picked Republican Sen. Clifford Case in 1972, and since then, two other New Jersey Republicans briefly served in the Senate, but they were appointed, not elected. They were Sen. Nicholas Brady, who served from April to December in 1982, and Sen. Jeffery Chiesa who served from June to October in 2013, until Democrat Sen. Cory Booker was elected to that seat.

New Jersey has never elected an independent candidate to the Senate; Democrats and Republicans held the seats going back to the 1840s, when Whig party senators served.

Mr. Kim is starting the summer campaign season with a financial advantage, having more than $4 million cash on hand.

Already established in Congress, Mr. Kim ran on reforming corruption in politics, and initially ran to unseat Mr. Menendez. He is endorsed by many unions. Before being elected to Congress, Mr. Kim worked as a national security officer for both President George Bush’s and President Barack Obama’s administrations. He worked at the Pentagon and in Afghanistan as a civilian adviser to the military.

Mr. Kim has a bit more money in the bank than Mr. Menendez, who reports $3.5 million cash on hand as of May 15. Despite being out of the race for the primary, Mr. Menendez has spent $7.6 million, more than any other candidate. Mr. Kim spent $3.9 million.

(Left) Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) speaks at a Senate hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 27, 2021. (Right) Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) talks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Aug. 24, 2021. Greg Nash/Pool/AFP via Getty Images; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner, a Republican who ran aginst Mr.Bashaw, spent $212,000 in the primary, touting her endorsement from President Trump. She finshed the primary season with  $262,000 cash on hand.

Ms. Serrano Glassner told The Epoch Times this is a tough seat for a Republican to win.

“This is a very different year, however, because we are up against a … disastrous economy,” she said. “With New Jersey being one of the most expensive states, and one the highest taxed states in the country … I think we are going to see people vote in different ways. And with the votes being split between three people, the question is, how many votes does Menendez peel off Andy Kim?”

Mr. Bashaw has $525,000 cash on hand. His primary spending of $839,000 was spent partly on advertising focused on “breaking the one party monopoly,” in New Jersey.

Mr. Bashaw believes his campaign can appeal to independent voters and Democrats as well as Trump-loving Republicans.

“I’m in the hospitality business. We’re welcoming people all the time to our hotels from all over our state,” Mr. Bashaw told The Epoch Times. “There’s a sense of that I’m somebody who can bring people together to get things done.”

Looking toward the general election, Mr. Bashaw said, “Andy Kim has voted with the Squad every time, and Menedez is a corrupt guy. If we’re running against both of those guys, distinguishing ourselves, I think, will be easy.”

Congressional District 7

New Jersey’s Seventh Congressional District encompasses all of Hunterdon and Warren counties and parts of Morris, Somerset, Sussex, and Union counties. This is a rural-suburban area and home to some farms and many commuters who work in New Jersey and New York. The mix of people with metropolitan and agriculture backgrounds makes this an unpredictable swing district.

Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-N.J.) flipped the seat to Republican when he was elected in 2022. He was unopposed in the primary, meaning he was able to conserve a good portion of his war chest for the general election. He starts the next phase of campaigning with more than $2.5 million.

He is the grandson of former U.S. Rep. Robert Kean and son of former Gov. Thomas Kean Sr. He was appointed by President George H.W. Bush to work in the Environmental Protection Agency, and he served in the New Jersey General Assembly.

He will face Democrat Susan Altman, who was also unopposed in the primary, as three other Democrats dropped out of the race.

Ms. Altman holds two graduate degrees from Oxford University. She is a progressive organizer and former executive director of the left-wing nonprofit New Jersey’s Working Families Alliance, which advocates for unionized workers and socialist ideals. She currently has $1.1 million cash on hand, but more money is likely to come her way now that the primary is over.

Presidential Primary

On the Democratic ticket, President Joe Biden received 317,518 votes, that is 88 percent, with 60 percent of the Democratic votes counted. On the Republican side, former President Donald Trump was unopposed.

The results further cement their positions as their respective parties’ presumptive nominees. But some Democrats used their vote to send a message to the party. With 60 percent of Democratic votes counted, 14,707 went to Terrisa Bukovinac, a pro-life Democrat who is on the ballot for U.S. president, to that show Democrats are not all in support of abortion.

The national trend of Democrats voting “uncommitted” continued in New Jersey and with 60 percent of Democratic votes counted, 26,854 were cast as uncommitted. The movement is being used to express dissatisfaction with President Biden’s policies toward the people of Gaza. It was marked on the ballot as “Justice for Palestine, Permanent Ceasefire Now, Uncommitted Delegates.”