Cook moves Menendez race in New Jersey to tossup
By Lisa Hagen - 10/26/18 09:20 AM EDT
The Cook Political Report has shifted Sen. Bob Menendez’s (D-N.J.) reelection race to a toss-up in deep-blue New Jersey, a depressing development for Democrats who are having to protect a seat in a deep-blue state when they need to focus on protecting members in states where President Trump is more popular.
Menendez is facing a tough challenge from Republican Bob Hugin, a former pharmaceutical company CEO, in what’s become a closer-than-expected race in a state that Trump lost by 14 points in 2016. New Jersey hasn’t elected a Republican to the Senate since 1972.
Jennifer Duffy, a Senate analyst for Cook, wrote on Friday that the race has become solely about Menendez’s ethic problems and voters' lack of enthusiasm. Menendez, who has denied any wrongdoing, has weathered attacks over his 2015 indictment of bribery and fraud charges.
His trial ended in a hung jury and federal prosecutors later dropped the charges. But the Senate Ethics Committee “severely†admonished Menendez earlier this year over the case.
“The biggest threat to Menendez’s re-election is not so much Hugin than it is the voter who goes to the polls and decides to send Menendez a message, much the way many did in the primary when 38 percent voted for his unknown primary opponent,†Duffy said.
more
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/413287-cook-moves-menendez-race-in-new-jersey-to-tossup
