Bob Menendez Will Run for Reelection As an Independent Despite Foreign Bribery Indictment

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Embattled Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) will run for reelection as independent in spite of his alleged role in a foreign bribery scandal.

According to the New Jersey Globe, Menendez plans to file paperwork to run as independent before the June 4 deadline. From the Globe‘s report:

The New Jersey Globe first reported that Menendez is circulating petitions – in some cases gathering signatures on his own. He also activated a group of old friends from his 1980s campaigns, including Matteo Perez, Sr., to help him. NBC News reported last week that Menendez had obtained the 800 signatures he needed.

The New Jersey Globe has confirmed that Menendez has no campaign staff and is managing his own race.

Menendez’s lack of campaign infrastructure would seem to lend credence to NBC’s report from March that the objective of an independent bid for reelection would be to raise money to help pay for his considerable legal expenses.

Menendez is facing federal charges for allegedly accepting bribes in exchange for influencing U.S. policy to benefit the Egyptian and Qatari governments. Notably, he was the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 2018 until the DOJ’s indictment forced him to step down last September.

That indictment accused Menendez of having “promised to and did use his influence and power and breach his official duty in ways that benefited the Government of Egypt” and providing “sensitive U.S. Government information” to Egypt.

A government raid of Menendez’s home turned up $400,000 worth of gold bars among other gifts.