Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), who was indicted days ago on federal bribery charges, is expected to announce on Monday that he intends to seek reelection, according to a report from the New Jersey Globe.
Menendez has been defiant in the wake of the indictment, claiming that he’s being targeted for being Latino. “It is not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat,” he said in a statement. “I am not going anywhere.”
The embattled senator’s forthcoming announcement comes as several high-profile Democrats have called on him to resign from the U.S. Senate. “[T]he alleged facts are so serious they compromise the ability of Senator Menendez to effectively represent the people of our state. Therefore, I am calling for his immediate resignation,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement.
Menendez is up for reelection in 2024, though he has not formally announced his candidacy. Three Democrats have already declared their candidacies, and it’s unclear how his indictment will impact his ability to obtain endorsements.
U.S. Senator Bob Menendez will hold a press conference on Monday morning in Hudson County, where he grew up and where he launched his political career as a 20-year-old school board member, making his first public comments since his indictment on federal corruption charges on Friday.
Menendez is not expected to resign, but rather take a defiant stand against the allegations against him, the New Jersey Globe has learned. Indeed, he is expected to double-down and say he plans to seek re-election in 2024, even if he needs to run off the organization line.
That is consistent with Menendez’s two statements on Friday; the later one was made after Gov. Phil Murphy and a large group of Democratic party leaders and elected officials publicly called for his resignation.
Menendez is accused of accepting “hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes” in cash, gold, lavish gifts, and more, for which he was to use his power as a U.S. senator to benefit three New Jersey businessmen and the Egyptian government. The senator’s wife was also indicted with her husband.
Related: Why Are Democrats Suddenly Willing to Sacrifice Bob Menendez?
Menendez is no stranger to legal troubles. He has been accused of various crimes in the past, including underage prostitution, for which he was never charged despite the evidence against him—he can thank the Obama Justice Department for that. Menendez’s intention to run for reelection could potentially be problematic for the Democrats—though he’s managed to survive scandals in the past.
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