State Democratic Chairman and Essex County Democratic Chairman LeRoy Jones, Jr. has endorsed Tammy Murphy’s bid for a U.S. Senate seat, giving the new candidate the support of one of the most powerful Democrats from New Jersey.
“Tammy Murphy has not only been the First Lady of New Jersey for the past six years. She has been a fierce advocate for women, families, education and climate solutions, health care equity and all of New Jersey,” Jones said. “She helped develop policy solutions to address the staggering racial disparities in maternal and infant mortality rates in New Jersey. She helped design and implement a first national climate change education standards program in the state.
Jones also praised Murphy for being “a strong supporter of women’s rights and better gun laws to protect our communities and our children.”
“I have no doubt that Tammy Murphy will bring her experience and expertise to Washington and serve New Jersey with integrity and passion,” Jones said.
Essex County has nearly 300,000 registered Democrats, the most in the state — or about 12 percent of the primary electorate.
Murphy has now won the public support of a third of the state’s Democratic county chairs.
Last week, Democratic leaders from Camden, Bergen, Hudson, Middlesex, Passaic and Somerset endorsed Murphy for the Senate.
Jones’ support for Murphy was expected; he is an ally of Governor Phil Murphy. He was also a longtime supporter of outgoing President Bob Menendez.
Murphy will face Rep. Andy Kim (Moorestown Democrat) and former Newark school board member Larry Hamm in the Democratic primary — and possibly Menendez.