Rep. Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City) unveiled endorsements today from five Hudson County assemblymembers, meaning that the freshman congressman now has endorsements from eight of Hudson County’s nine state legislators – with Assemblyman John Allen (D-Hoboken) as the lone exception.
Assemblymembers William Sampson (D-Bayonne), Barbara McCann Stamato (D-Jersey City), Jessica Ramirez (D-Jersey City), Julio Marenco (D-North Bergen), and Gabe Rodriguez (D-West New York) said in a statement today that Menendez “has always fought for every single constituent we together represent.”
“Rob has been present in our cities and towns and is always available to listen to our concerns about any issues facing our residents,” the quintet of legislators said. “Rob has earned a second term in Congress, and we are committed to working to ensure that every single resident of New Jersey’s 8th congressional district benefits from his continued service to them.”
Menendez, the son of indicted U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, is currently locked in a potentially competitive Democratic primary fight against Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla. Bhalla hasn’t attracted much official party support, but he raised $957,000 in his first months as a candidate, and polling shows Menendez could be vulnerable thanks to his father’s legal troubles.
That puts Allen, who took office seven days ago as Hoboken’s designated assemblyman, in a tough spot.
Allen was essentially appointed to his Assembly seat by Bhalla, his former boss; in Hudson County, mayors get huge amounts of say over who represents their town in the legislature. For Allen, endorsing in the 8th congressional district primary would mean snubbing either his town’s mayor or an incumbent congressman with widespread party support.
Allen declined to comment on the race.
See here for a full list of endorsements in New Jersey’s 2024 congressional contests.