New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy dropped out of the U.S. Senate race Sunday, leaving Rep Andy Kim as the clear frontrunner in the upcoming Democratic primary.
The decision comes after a series of victories for Kim in which he beat out Murphy for support at local party conventions, Axios reported.
The wife of Governor Phil Murphy dropped out despite winning most of the endorsements from state party leaders.
However, insiders said she did not have a clear path to victory and decided to withdrawal for the good of the party. Democratic insiders told NJ.com her campaign had become a national issue because it was not well run and her ability to win would be “unbelievably limited” and expensive.
Her decision also avoids a contentious battle between Kim and Murphy when the winner is expected to have a tough battle against Republican frontrunner, developer Curtis Bashaw.
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“It was just so many things,” the operative said. “She did the right thing by dropping out. I think she should have dropped out sooner.”
Murphy made her announcement in a taped message released on social media.
“After many busy, invigorating and yes, challenging months, I am suspending my Senate campaign today,” she said. :I’ve been genuine and factual throughout. But it is clear to me that continuing in this race will involve waging a very divisive and negative campaign, which I am not willing to do.”
The Hill reports that the race between Kim and Murphy had been considered a tossup with Kim having greater voter enthusiasm and Murphy with most of the major endorsements.
Murphy held a team meeting with the Governor and her team on Friday to discuss the future of her candidacy. The final decision reportedly came on Saturday.
The First Lady did not endorse Kim, but did encourage party unity.
In a post on X, Kim wrote “Let us also show our respect and appreciation to First Lady Tammy Murphy for her continued service to our state and country. It’s important to take a step back and remember that we are all a part of something bigger than all of us. We are here at this moment today because of the extraordinary grassroots movement growing in NJ. And I can promise you we are going to keep running the strongest possible campaign imaginable through Election Day. Let’s keep it going!”
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