New Jersey politics have a reputation for being wild. But this? This is something else.
Even by our standards, what’s going on in the Garden State these days is head-spinning. Earth-shattering, in fact.
A sitting U.S. senator, Robert Menendez, is on trial for alleged bribery, for the second time in seven years. In the midst of a bitter race to replace that senator, a judge blocked, at least for now, a primary ballot system that has empowered party machines and helped influence elections for decades. And now one of the most powerful non-elected officials in the state, George Norcross III, has been indicted on racketeering charges.
All in the span of months, all blows against a political establishment in a Democratic-led state known for party bosses and backroom deals, and all signs that if New Jersey’s old guard isn’t eroding, it’s being seriously challenged.
“If you had a time machine and went back to 2019 and explained to me the current status of things, I would not in a million years believe you,” said Sue Altman, a longtime progressive advocate who is now a Democratic candidate for Congress this fall. “These are unprecedented times in New Jersey and evidence we are in a new chapter. It’s Jersey Spring.”
The developments have sent people all over the state’s political map searching for the right superlative to convey their what-the-hell-is-happening feeling.
“This is probably the craziest time I’ve ever been involved in New Jersey politics,” said state Sen. Troy Singleton, D-Burlington, who started his political career here as an intern in the 1990s. “I find that to be surreal this moment we’re living in. We’ll see how it plays itself out.”
Maybe the most surreal of it all happened Monday, when the state’s Democratic-appointed attorney general announced charges against Norcross, who for decades has been a behind-the-scenes and often-feared Democratic powerbroker in New Jersey. It’s something that seemed unfathomable just a few short years ago.
“We’re changing the entire power structure almost overnight,” said Matthew Hale, a political science professor at Seton Hall University and a Democratic councilman in Highland Park, who argues New Jersey is going through its biggest period of political upheaval since 1947, when a new state constitution was written.
All of this has unfolded before a new state budget must be finalized by next weekend — a usually frenzied period, this time with questions over tax hikes. And a huge governor’s race to succeed Democrat Phil Murphy next year is already heating up, with some of the state’s biggest political names in the mix.
Some say this is all a long time coming in the rough-and-tumble state and a breaking point after years of pent-up anger at the powers-that-be in both major political parties. There’s also uncertainty about what happens next. But one thing is clear: Jersey politics — and Jersey itself — likely won’t ever be the same again.
So how did all of this happen? Let’s take a look.
Menendez on trial after another indictment
This started in September. That’s when Robert Menendez, the veteran Democratic senator and one of the state’s most entrenched, high-profile politicians, was indicted on bombshell corruption charges. The allegations came with photos right out of “The Sopranos” — gold bars found in his home, cash stuffed into jackets bearing his name.
Unlike when Menendez beat previous corruption charges in 2017, New Jersey’s Democratic leaders abandoned him this time and one by one called on him to resign. Menendez has denied the charges and refused to step down.
He even filed to run for re-election this year as an independent, saying he has a “proven track record of fighting” for residents and has to “go this route” because of “overzealous prosecutors.” It’s a move that at least gives Democrats agita as they try to hang on to their slim control in the Senate and don’t need to worry about a usually safe seat in a blue state.
Menendez is now on trial in Manhattan in a case that grabs daily headlines, some drawing attention to the. long-suspected underbelly of Jersey’s political universe. But that may just be window dressing.
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“Ironically, I’m not even sure the daily drama of the trial itself is even the main attraction in the whole three-ring circus of our politics right now,” said Micah Rasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University and a former press secretary to Democratic former Gov. Jim McGreevey.
“At this point, it’s kind of like the big cannon that started the whole show has become just a part of the atmospherics going on in the background of everything else that’s taken center stage.”
The fall of the party boss-run county line
Indeed, the Menendez indictment was only the beginning.
A day after the charges were announced, Democratic U.S. Rep. Andy Kim declared he’d seek Menendez’s seat. Weeks later, New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy, the wife of Gov. Murphy, joined the race with the support of several top Democratic county leaders — who are often the gatekeepers to power in the state.
After all, they usually control “the county line,” a long-debated system in which candidates endorsed by county party leaders get prominent placement on the primary ballot for both parties. That frequently locks in a victory.
This time was different. In a dramatic primary battle, Kim didn’t back down, started wracking up unexpected wins over Murphy at Democratic county conventions, and was cheered on by progressive and good-government advocates who accused the first lady of being bolstered by nepotism. Murphy ultimately dropped out, saying she wanted to avoid tearing down a fellow Democrat in a big election year.
But that wasn’t the end of it. Kim had sued to strike down the county line, and days after Murphy’s exit, a judge eliminated the system for this year’s Democratic primary. Kim went on to won the Democratic nomination.
The judge still has to issue a final ruling, but political observers expect the line, at least in its current form, to be killed completely — a move that would upend the way nominees are chosen and elections are run in New Jersey.
- MORE: A judge’s decision is sending shockwaves through N.J., where politics is ruled by backroom deals
“When Tammy decided to run for Senate, it exposed everyone’s anger and frustration in the system in New Jersey,” said Jeff Tittel, a veteran environmentalist.
He said what happened next — the Norcross indictment — was a “continuation” of that.
“We’ve seen an earthquake followed by a tsunami,” Tittel said.
Norcross in the crosshairs
You may not know George Norcross, but his fingerprints are all over New Jersey.
While never holding public office, the wealthy insurance broker is a Democratic powerbroker and fundraiser who has helped bankroll and control a powerful South Jersey political bloc that has long held deep influence over policy and politics in the state. At his height, Norcross and then-state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, a childhood friend, forged a mighty alliance with then-Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, that dominated government.
“You could not envision a day when Norcross wasn’t running the state essentially,” Julia Sass Rubin, a Rutgers University professor who studies New Jersey government, said of that period. “That he’s now under indictment, it’s stunning.”
Initiatives supported by Norcross helped revitalize his hometown of Camden. But critics see him as the epitome of a New Jersey party boss. And after succeeding Christie, Murphy’s administration began investigating tax breaks companies tied to Norcross received under a program installed under Christie. That led to a public feud between Norcross and Murphy, who ran for office as a self-professed progressive.
There was also a well-documented 2019 public hearing at the Statehouse in Trenton in which Altman, then head of the advocacy group New Jersey Working Families, was forcibly removed while Norcross sat in the audience.
But Norcross suffered a big setback in 2021, when Republicans gained seven seats in the state Legislature, including five supported by his South Jersey machine. Most notably, Sweeney, the Senate president, lost re-election in a massive upset to Republican truck driver Ed Durr, taking him out of power.
“The major sea change started when Sweeney lost his seat,” Rubin said. ”It didn’t stop that we’re a machine-controlled state, but it certainly impacted the power-control alignment.”
The tension between Murphy and Norcross eventually cooled, with the governor even raising money for Norcross’ super PAC earlier this year.
On Monday, though, that tsunami happened.
State Attorney General Matthew Platkin announced charges against Norcross and five others, accusing him of engineering a 12-year scheme that enabled him to land millions in lucrative real estate deals in Camden “through unlawful means.”
The way Platkin, a fellow Democrat appointed by Murphy, described it sounded like an indictment of the state’s political system.
“It’s often said that in New Jersey politics is a bloodsport,” he said. “What’s meant by that is that if you don’t go along with the demands of those in political power, you’ll get hurt. … There is nothing inherent in our state’s culture that requires us to accept politics and government that functions in this way.”
In a remarkable scene, Norcross, dressed in a suit and dress shoes without socks, sat in the front row while Platkin spoke.
- MORE: Explosive indictment accuses powerful N.J. political boss in huge corruption scheme
Norcross has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and, in a scrum with reporters, called Platkin a “coward” because “he has forced people in this building to implement his will.”
On Friday, Norcross’ attorneys, Michael Critchley and Kevin Marino, released a statement saying the charges are “entirely baseless,” Platkin’s statements are “blatantly false,” and the case is the result of a vendatta Platkin has against Nocross.
“Simply put, this is a political attack masquerading as a criminal case,” they added.
They added that “Camden’s future today is brighter because of the very people Mr. Platkin has targeted.”
Notably, this came just a few months after Platkin also played a role in the fight against the county line. The attorney general, one of the Murphys’ closest allies for years, issued an brief in the case saying the line was unconstitutional — an opinion that put him at odds with the governor and first lady.
Though governors appoint people to the position, attorneys general are supposed to act independently of the governor.
Gov. Murphy was asked this week if he supports Platkin’s effort to investigate Norcross.
“Matt Platkin has my complete confidence, period,” Murphy said.
Along with Platkin and Kim, a few other big figures in Jersey politics have touted anti-machine platforms — including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, both of whom are running for governor.
Dan Cassino, a pollster at Fairleigh Dickinson University, said this is the culmination of years-long frustration against the political establishment in both parties. Just look at all the candidates running as “outsiders” these days.
Cassino noted this has already played out on the Republican side, with the rise of former President Donald Trump and his supporters. Now, he said, progressive are having a transformative moment.
“What we’re seeing is this is a continuation of the longterm story in New Jersey politics: institutional parties trying to hold on to influence,” Cassino said. “There is enough political pressure and will to try to take on someone like Norcross. I think in the past, there wasn’t the political will to take it on.”
Hale, the Seton Hall professor, said Norcross’ indictment is a “pretty strong signal that party bosses and party leaders are as indictable as anyone else.”
State Assemblyman Brian Bergen, R-Morris, said the indictment “almost reads like a standard operating manual for New Jersey politics.”
Richard Codey, the former governor and lawmaker whom Norcross helped oust from the state Senate presidency in 2010, had one thought about it all.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Codey said.
What now?
Great question.
A verdict in the Menendez case could come as early as this summer, though he is likely to appeal.
Then there’s Menendez’s independent bid to keep his seat, which is unlikely to be successful but could be a headache for Democrats in a big election year — if it happens at all.
As the Democratic nominee, Kim is now the favorite to replace Menendez in a state that has elected only Democrats to the U.S. Senate since 1972. Republicans, though, are hoping their nominee, hotel developer Curtis Bashaw, will end that streak, maybe with a boost from Menendez peeling away Democratic voters.
Whether Menendez is convicted before November or stays in the race remains to be seen. He has until Aug. 16 to withdraw.
As for Norcross? Insiders expect his indictment will be another big hit to South Jersey Democrats.
“I think they’re gonna be in the wilderness for a while,” Tittel said.
The indictment could also hurt Sweeney, the former Senate president who is vying for a comeback as he runs for the Democratic nomination for governor next year. Norcross is a major fundraiser and supporter.
Sweeney declined to comment.
Plus, there are questions of whether the Menendez and Norcross indictments and the general politics-on-fire atmosphere in the state could give Republicans a push in the 2025 fight for the governor’s mansion.
Others argue that Norcross and his allies are not easy to count out. After all, Democrats won back many of the South Jersey legislative seats they lost three years ago.
Former Assemblyman John Wisniewski, also a former state Democratic Party chairman, said it’s “a little early to predict exactly how this all shakes out.”
“If there’s a conviction, that would send shockwaves through most of the state,” Wisniewski added.
Of note: Unlike when Menendez was indicted, there wasn’t a stream of statements this week denouncing Norcross. In fact, many figures in both parties have been silent.
Gov. Murphy told reporters Wednesday the Norcross allegations are “very serious” and “deeply disturbing,” but, like others, he stressed that people are innocent until proven guilty.
Asked whether he will continue to raise money for Norcross’ political action committee, Murphy said: “I’ve raised money for Democrats up and down this state and all across this country. And I’ll continue to do so.
Cory Booker, the state’s other Democratic U.S. senator, told Politico: “Anytime you see public figures getting indicted it’s a sad time for our state. This is something that should be concerning.”
The indictment did spark some mud-slinging in the governor’s race, with U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist. — an expected candidate — taking aim at Fulop, the Jersey City mayor who has already declared his candidacy. Gottheimer argued on on social media that Fulop once supported Menendez, Norcross, and Tammy Murphy “until you didn’t.”
“Enough phony flip-Fuloping,” he said.
Fulop fired back: “From what I’ve heard, it seems you agitate easily and I didn’t mean to get under your skin.” He then asked Gottheimer is he’s pro-Norcross and pro-Menendez. “I’m confused.”
Altman, the Democratic nominee in New Jersey’s 7th congressional district this year, said “there’s a boogeyman effect when it comes to George Norcross.”
“The establishment would probably keep quiet because they’re still afraid of the wrath of George Norcross,” she said.
More broadly, there are questions now about whether all these developments will actually change the way politics is done in New Jersey.
Even though the county line was gone from this year’s Democratic primary, most party-backed candidates won. While most agree the end of the line will encourage more candidates to launch campaigns, party leaders still have fundraising prowess and get-out-the vote operations to help the people they prefer.
Murphy told reporters the primary results showed “organizations matter, line or no line.”
Meanwhile, state leaders recently enacted a law revamping New Jersey’s public-records law despite strong pushback from advocates and the press — which some saw as the political establishment still flexing its muscle.
It’s also unclear what state leaders might conjure to replace the line if the judge does indeed banish it.
“I’ve been around long enough to know every time someone thinks New Jersey politics is changing, it doesn’t,” said Wisniewski, the former lawmaker.
Antoinette Miles, the New Jersey state director of the Working Families Party, said there is “a turning of the tide” going on.
“The jury is still out in terms of what comes next,” Miles said. “The machine didn’t build itself overnight and toppling the machine won’t happen overnight.”
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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X at @johnsb01.
