Josh Shapiro raising money for Tammy Murphy

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is hosting a high-dollar fundraiser for Tammy Murphy’s U.S. Senate campaign in Philadelphia later this month.

Former Gov. Edward Rendell is also helping to raise money for Murphy, the First Lady of New Jersey, for the seat currently held by indicted U.S. Senator Bob Menendez.

Shapiro and Rendell are the first prominent national political leaders to take sides in New Jersey’s Democratic Senate primary.

Menendez was indicted in September on federal bribery and conspiracy charges; the Justice Department later added a superseding indictment alleging that the three-term senator acted as an unregistered agent of a foreign government.  He has not yet announced if he will seek re-election.

Murphy faces Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown) and former Newark Board of Education member Lawrence Hamm in the Democratic primary.

Another Pennsylvania Democrat, John Fetterman, has become Menendez’s staunchest critic in the U.S. Senate, publicly taunting him.

Fetterman proposed legislation that would strip Menendez of his committee assignments and access to classified information.  Five days after the Justice Department announced criminal charges against Menendez, Fetterman compared the senior senator from New Jersey to Tony Soprano.

He has not taken sides in the Senate primary, although he has indicated his willingness to support a primary challenger to Menendez.

In September, Fetterman emailed a fundraising solicitation for Kim’s Senate bid, but said that didn’t constitute an endorsement. 

Ticket prices for the event range from $1,000 to $6,600.  The first $3,300 for individuals will go to Murphy’s primary election account, and the balance will be designated for the general election campaign.  Co-hosts are being asked to raise at least $10,000, and co-chairs are raising $20,000 or more.

Shapiro started out in politics as an aide to a U.S. Senator from New Jersey, Robert Torricelli.