The first debate in the New Jersey U.S. Senate race between Republican Curtis Bashaw and Democrat Andy Kim will take place on Sunday, October 6, at 8 PM.
The incumbent, Robert Menendez, who was convicted on federal corruption charges last month, remains on the ballot as an independent candidate; he was not invited to participate.
The 90-minute debate is sponsored by the New Jersey Globe, On New Jersey, and the Rebovich Institute of New Jersey Politics at Rider University and will be streamed on the New Jersey Globe, On New Jersey, Facebook Live, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube.
Laura Jones, the host of “New Jersey Politics with Laura Jones,” a weekly public affairs show for MeTV-WJLP New Jersey/New York, will serve as the debate moderator. Panelists will include New Jersey Globe political reporter Joey Fox, New Jersey Globe editor David Wildstein, and Micah Rasmussen, the director of the Rebovich Institute. Questions will also come from some members of the public.
Bashaw is a businessman who redeveloped the historic Congress Hall Hotel in Cape May County. He is making his first bid for public office.
Kim is a three-term congressman and former Obama White House national security staffer.
The winner of the Bashaw vs. Kim contest will become the first U.S. Senator from South Jersey since Robert Hendrickson of Woodbury retired from the Senate in 1954.