Election 2024 updates: Andy Kim wins New Jersey’s Democratic primary for U.S. Senate seat; Rob Menendez holds onto 8th District

Dr. Rajesh Mohan has won the Republican nomination for U.S. House in New Jersey’s 3rd Congressional District. He will face Dr. Herb Conaway in the general election.

In the 8th Congressional District race in North Jersey, incumbent Rob Menendez, the son of Sen. Bob Menendez, defeated challenger Ravi Bhalla, the mayor of Hoboken, and businessman Kyle Jasey.

The 8th Congressional District includes parts of Essex, Hudson and Union counties.

The race was overshadowed by the federal corruption and bribery trial of Menendez’s father, but in the end, the senator’s poor approval ratings and legal troubles did not derail his son’s campaign.

READ MORE: Incumbent Rob Menendez wins primary election in N.J.’s 8th Congressional District

Dr. Herb Conaway bested Asw. Carol Murphy and three other candidates to win the Democratic primary for the 3rd Congressional District seat. Conaway will now focus on bagging the seat currently occupied by U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, who became the Democratic nominee for Senate Tuesday night.

Conaway said voters recognized the experience that he brought to the table.

“Certainly we out worked our opponents at the door [and] at meetings,” he said. “We were able to build a very strong base of support financially, and we messaged on experience and leadership throughout this race.”

READ MORE: Conaway wins Democratic primary in New Jersey’s 3rd Congressional District

In the Republican Senate contest, wealthy hotel operator Curtis Bashaw defeated Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner.

Bashaw centered his campaign in part on ending “one-party monopoly” in New Jersey, where state government is led entirely by Democrats, and on sending a conservative to Washington. It’s unclear whether that message will resonate with general election voters, who have not elected a Republican to the Senate in over five decades. Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by about 1 million in New Jersey.

U.S. Rep. Andy Kim has defeated Lawrence Hamm, the chairman of the People’s Organization for Progress, and Patricia Campos-Medina, a labor organizer and immigration rights representative, in New Jersey’s Democratic race for U.S. Senate.

Current U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, who is on trial for alleged bribery and corruption, may also be in the race.

READ MORE: Congressman Andy Kim wins Democratic U.S. Senate primary race

Joe Biden and Donald Trump will be on New Jersey ballots this November as they won their parties’ presidential primaries in the state.

Polls have closed in New Jersey’s 2024 primary election.

Voters weighed in on races for the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House, among others.

Follow along as WHYY News tracks the primary election results this evening

A poll worker at the First Baptist Church of Mount Holly in Eastampton, Burlington County, said there was a steady stream of voters Tuesday. Though there was no line going out of the building, people started to show up one by one during the 6 p.m. hour.

While a couple of voters said they voted for Asm. Herb Conaway in the Democratic primary for the 3rd Congressional District because they were familiar with him through his ads and signs, at least two others opted to vote for one of the non-leading candidates.

The 3rd Congressional District is an open seat since its current occupant, U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, opted to run for Senate last fall.

The Cook Political Report has rated the 3rd District as “Solid Democrat,” meaning that contest will be noncompetitive and the winner of the Democratic primary will likely go on to win in November.

While Burlington County is the base of the district, it was re-drawn to include parts of Mercer and Monmouth counties. Mercer leans Democratic, while Monmouth County has more unaffiliated and Republican voters.

With U.S. Rep. Andy Kim running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Bob Menendez, who is on trial for corruption, five Democrats and four Republicans have thrown their hats into the ring for Kim’s seat in the 3rd Congressional District. The district includes parts of Burlington, Mercer and Monmouth counties.

On the Democratic side, the race features two state legislators who have been statehouse colleagues for seven years.

Democrat Herb Conaway

Dr. Herb Conaway is a lifelong resident of Burlington County and has served in the Assembly for 25 years. He has garnered the support of several Democratic groups.

On his website, Conaway said he is running for Congress to ensure New Jersey’s middle-class families can thrive. He said as a congressman, he will work to lessen the tax burden on Garden State residents, protect small businesses and bring more job opportunities to the 3rd District.

» READ MORE: Here’s what to know about the crowded New Jersey primary to fill Andy Kim’s congressional seat

In-person voting is underway across New Jersey for the state’s 2024 primary election.

With polls open until 8 p.m., some candidates are still trying to get the word out.

In the race for New Jersey’s U.S. Senate seat, Democrat Patricia Campos-Medina is meeting and greeting residents of a Jersey City housing unit. Later this afternoon, she will head to Perth Amboy for a neighborhood canvassing event.

U.S. Rep Andy Kim, the leading U.S. Senate candidate, has no events or rallies planned. The congressman is spending the day with his family, a spokesperson said.

Democratic Assemblywoman Carol Murphy, who is running to fill Andy Kim’s congressional seat in the 3rd District, plans to go door-to-door and reach out to voters by phone.

Brian Schkeeper, another Democrat running to represent the 3rd District, said he is headquartered mostly out of his living room, and will be campaigning in targeted areas.

WHYY News reached out to all the candidates running for the U.S. Senate and Congress in the 3rd District about their plans for Election Day. Most did not reply.

In the 8th Congressional District, Democratic incumbent Rob Menendez faces challengers Ravi Bhalla, Hoboken’s mayor, and businessman Kyle Jasey. The district includes parts of Essex, Hudson and Union counties.

The race is being overshadowed by a trial featuring Menendez’s father, U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez. The senator is facing numerous charges, including conspiracy to obstruct justice and commit bribery for allegedly accepting bribes, including cash, gold bars and a luxury car, to assist a foreign government and block a federal case against a co-defendant.

Here’s a look at Rob Menendez, Bhalla and Jasey, and their campaign priorities.

Incumbent Rob Menendez

Born and raised in Hudson County, Robert Menendez was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022. His platform is strengthening families and serving the community. On his website, Menendez said he’s working to address the pressures families face because of the increasing costs of housing, energy and food. He introduced the Working Families Task Force Act and is co-sponsoring the Raise the Wage Act of 2023, which would raise the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour by 2027.

» READ MORE: N.J. 8th Congressional District contest overshadowed by Menendez corruption trial

Andy Kim couldn’t rest one evening last September.

“I didn’t get a single minute of sleep that night,” he recalled in an interview with NPR, “I really felt like I had to do something and really show people that, you know, when there’s these problems in our politics, that there are people who want to step up and try to fix it.”

The problem was his fellow New Jersey Democrat, Sen. Bob Menendez. Last fall, Menendez was indicted for the second time on corruption charges. The news might not have rocked most voters in New Jersey — where as many as 80% of its residents said they viewed the state’s politicians as at least “a little” corrupt, according to a May 2023 Fairleigh Dickinson University poll.

But Kim had a different reaction. He quickly became the first Democrat in the state to call for Menendez to resign, then he hastily assembled a call with political advisers to ask: What if he ran for Senate instead?

“Many of them said, ‘Oh, well, look, we can build out a six week roadmap here. We can have a launch video. We can have a website and a press plan.’ And I remember just telling them on the phone, like, ‘What would you say if I launched in 3 hours from now?’”

» READ MORE: Andy Kim upended New Jersey politics. Now he’s on track to become a senator

A little over two months ago, New Jersey’s embattled U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez announced he would not run in Tuesday’s Democratic primary.

But Menendez did leave open the possibility of running for re-election if he is cleared of all charges at his ongoing federal corruption trial.

In the meantime, 10 candidates are on next Tuesday’s primary ballot, including three Democrats, four Republicans, two independents and one Green Party hopeful.

Democrat Andy Kim

The most well-known candidate seeking the senate seat is 3rd District Congressman Andy Kim.

On his website, Kim said New Jersey is where he grew up, adding that he’s fighting for his family, his neighbors, the community that raised him and for working families in pursuit of the “American Dream.”

»  READ MORE: Here’s what to know about the primary election for Bob Menendez’s U.S. Senate seat

Nearly 700,000 mail ballots were requested for the 2024 primary election in New Jersey. As of Monday afternoon, nearly 282,000 mail ballots had been returned, or around 40%

Still holding onto yours? There are several ways to turn it in. Here’s what to know:

Voters have until 8 p.m. to return their mail ballots to their county board of elections office in person or drop them off in one of their county’s secure ballot drop box locations.

Mail ballots sent through the mail must be postmarked by Election Day and received by the county boards of elections on or before Monday, June 10.

Mail ballots cannot be returned to a voter’s polling location.

If you have a mail ballot but prefer to vote in person, bring your ballot (and the envelopes it came with) and surrender it to a poll worker. Once you’ve surrendered your mail ballot and signed a declaration, you can cast a regular ballot.

If you requested a mail ballot but didn’t receive one, head to your polling place and ask for a provisional ballot. After Election Day, officials will verify you didn’t already vote by mail and count your ballot.

Donald Trump’s name will appear on the ballot Tuesday for the first time since his historic conviction on felony crimes as a handful of states hold the last Republican presidential primary contests of 2024.

The former president will be on the ballot in Republican contests in Montana, New Jersey and New Mexico. President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, will compete in primaries in the same states, plus the primary in Washington, D.C., and one in South Dakota.

Republicans in D.C. held a party-run primary in March. South Dakota canceled its GOP presidential primary because Trump was uncontested.

Voters will also cast ballots in primary races for federal, state and local offices in those states.

Trump and Biden are both expected to easily prevail in the contests, where they’re the last major candidates still running.

But the results could signal voter concerns about their choices as November’s election barrels closer.

» READ MORE: After guilty verdict, Trump will appear on the ballot in the last presidential primaries of 2024

New Jersey Democrats and Republicans decide their parties’ standard-bearers Tuesday for the Senate amid the federal corruption trial in New York of New Jersey Democratic incumbent Sen. Bob Menendez, along with candidates for the presidency and House.

Menendez, a longtime Democrat, filed on Monday to run as an independent. He’s not on the primary ballot. Instead, Democratic voters are deciding between Rep. Andy Kim, labor leader Patricia Campos-Medina and longtime grassroots organizer Lawrence Hamm.

On the GOP side, it’s a four-way contest but southern New Jersey hotel developer Curtis Bashaw has gotten significant county party backing, and Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner won former President Donald Trump’s endorsement.

While New Jersey hasn’t elected a Republican to the Senate since 1972, the stakes are high in the divided Senate where Democrats have a narrow majority. The GOP is looking at Menendez’s independent run as a potential wedge that could boost their chances in the fall.

Menendez, his wife, and two business associates have pleaded not guilty to federal charges that the senator traded the promise of official acts for gold bars, cash, a luxury vehicle and a mortgage payment. A third business associate has pleaded guilty and agreed to testify in the case for prosecutors.

» READ MORE: New Jersey Democrats and Republicans picking Senate, House candidates amid Menendez corruption trial

Voters in New Jersey on Tuesday will choose candidates vying to replace Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez, who is on trial in federal court in New York on corruption charges and has opted not to run in the state’s Democratic primary.

Menendez, who has held the seat for more than 18 years, filed papers to run in the general election as an independent.

Presidential primaries will also be on the ballot, along with primary elections for the U.S. House.

The prospect of an open Senate seat has already had cascading effects in the state. The early jockeying between first lady Tammy Murphy, who has since suspended her campaign, and front-runner Rep. Andy Kim led to a ruling that eliminated the party line for at least the primary. The party line is a ballot design specific to New Jersey that displays candidates endorsed by county parties in one column, which opponents argue creates an advantage for party-backed candidates.

» READ MORE: What to expect in the New Jersey presidential and state primaries

New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez has decided to run for reelection as an independent.

WHYY News confirmed that Menendez filed the paperwork Monday with the state Division of Elections. He had until 4 p.m. Tuesday to file his petitions with at least 800 signatures. The senior senator, first elected as a Democrat in 2006, collected more than 2,400 signatures, according to a N.J. Department of State spokesperson.

New Jersey Globe was the first to report that Menendez would file the paperwork.

Menendez bowed out of the Democratic primary last March, leaving the door open for reelection as an independent candidate, based on his acquittal by a federal jury in New York City.

His trial is expected to end in July at the earliest.

» READ MORE: N.J. Sen. Menendez files for independent reelection run amid federal bribery trial

Voters across New Jersey on Tuesday are heading to the polls to cast ballots in the 2024 primary election. Polls close at 8 p.m.

Reporters from WHYY News are following each of the major campaigns — including the U.S. Senate race after indicted U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez announced he would not run in the Democratic primary. The senator instead filed for an independent reelection run.

As Election Day unfolds, follow WHYY’s live special coverage on WHYY.org, the WHYY App and WHYY-FM.

Your voter game plan

• Have questions about the election? Our 2024 voter hub has the answers
• Looking for voter info? Here’s WHYY News’ N.J. voter guide
• Here’s what to expect from the Garden State’s primary
• Want to learn more about the candidates?
  • Here’s who’s running in N.J.’s 8th Congressional District for incumbent Rob Menendez’s U.S. House seat
  • Here’s who’s running in N.J.’s 3rd Congressional District to replace U.S. Rep. Andy Kim
  • And here’s who’s running for U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s seat amid the senator’s corruption trial
• Eager for results? Follow along with WHYY as votes are tallied this evening