Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown), the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, today repeated his call for Bob Menendez to quickly resign following his conviction on federal corruption charges.
“This is a sad and somber day for New Jersey and our country. Our public servants should work for the people, and today we saw the people judge Senator Menendez as guilty and unfit to serve,” said Kim. “I called on Senator Menendez to step down when these charges were first made public, and now that he has been found guilty, I believe the only course of action for him is to resign his seat immediately. The people of New Jersey deserve better.”
Kim was the first major New Jersey official to call for Menendez’s resignation; that came hours after the Justice Department unsealed its indictment against the three-term senator on September 22.
One day later, Kim announced that he would challenge Menendez in the Democratic primary.
Kim’s Republican opponent, Curtis Bashaw, also called the conviction a “sad day for New Jersey,” using the news to attack Kim and the New Jersey Democratic Party.
“As yet another sordid chapter of New Jersey corruption closes, it’s time to say enough is enough,” Bashaw said. “We can’t keep sending the same old career Democratic insiders to Washington and expect different results. It’s time to reject the same Democratic politicians who turned a blind eye to this blatant corruption, including Andy Kim who ran on the ticket with Menendez in 2018, following his first indictment.”
A jury found Menendez guilty on all sixteen counts.