Tammy Murphy, New Jersey's first lady, will seek Bob Menendez's US Senate seat

It’s official: New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy will be running for the U.S. Senate seat currently occupied by Sen. Bob Menendez.

Murphy faces some stiff competition. In a June 2024 primary she will face Rep. Andy Kim and quite possibly Menendez himself, who, despite facing federal charges that allege he acted as an agent for Egypt, has said he will remain in office. Gov. Phil Murphy called for his resignation in the hours after he was indicted.

In a video announcing her candidacy, Murphy said she “believes New Jersey deserves an effective leader focused on the pressing challenges that families and children face.”

She said she has worked to lower New Jersey’s maternal and infant mortality rate and to make New Jersey the first and only state in the nation to incorporate climate change education in the K-12 curriculum.

If elected, Murphy would be the first woman to represent New Jersey in the Senate. She told The Record and NorthJersey.com by phone on Wednesday morning that it’s "an embarrassment that New Jersey has never had a woman represent us in the Senate."

"I believe that there are a lot of female leaders who deserves to be elevated. And I hope that when the history book is written on me that they will say not only was she a female leader who was effective, but that she really did mentor and care and encourage a pipeline for the future," she said. "I've worked with women historically and some of them have very sharp elbows and are not interested in anything beyond their own careers. So I hope that I will always be seen as someone who really is thoughtful and leans in and tries to elevate those around her."

When it comes to criticisms about cronyism and the advantage of having a husband running the state, Murphy said she fully intends to build a very broad coalition but that if she does "win the support of those who have spent decades building up a strong Democratic Party, then I would say to you that I would be honored."

What Tammy Murphy said

In her announcement video, Murphy also spoke about her childhood and being taught the importance of hard work and education. She mentioned her background in finance and meeting her future husband, Gov. Phil Murphy, before delving into the crux of her candidacy.

“When I was pregnant, and even after [my kids] were born, I worried about a million things like all moms do, but I never worried if I would survive childbirth or if my babies would get the care they needed. I didn’t have to,” she said. “The money in our family’s bank account and frankly the color of my skin meant I could get the best care available, but that’s not the case for everyone.”

She said she has focused on the climate crisis and educating children for the new green economy, before noting that the country faces issues like gun violence, a warming planet and politicians who want to ban abortions.

“Washington is filled with too many people more interested in getting rich or getting on camera than getting things done for you,” Murphy said as footage of Menendez rolled.

What has Tammy Murphy done as NJ first lady?

During the last six years, Murphy has maintained an agenda that prioritizes maternal health and mortality. She spearheaded the launch of the Nurture NJ initiative in 2019. The statewide program has worked to reduce the maternal and infant mortality epidemic in New Jersey and to ensure equitable health care among women and children of all races and ethnicities.

New Jersey has moved from 47th in the nation for maternal deaths to 27th. As part of that plan, Murphy helped make New Jersey only the second state in the nation to expand Medicaid coverage for women to a full year after childbirth — guaranteeing health care for nearly 9,000 mothers across the state.

Although she has held a prominent — but unofficial — role in her husband's administration since he took office in 2018, she told NorthJersey.com and The Record in March 2018 that she had no political aspirations.

She said by phone on Wednesday morning that her feelings changed because of the "way that the Senate seat has even come up as being a potential target."

"I look to my own children and they increasingly hear certain voices and see certain images in Washington, D.C., who are divisive and who are not people with whom they can relate," Murphy said. "My real concern is that not only are we not tackling and getting the big problems fixed, but on top of that we are really disenfranchising an entire generation at this point in time, and we need all good people, intelligent people and capable people to step up and lean in."

Behind the scenes: What does New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy do all day?

Will Phil Murphy's shadow prompt challenges?

It remains to be seen whether the issues that have plagued the governor will affect his wife's campaign. He has drawn criticism for his handling of everything from the pandemic response in veterans' homes to the work environment of his first campaign — which included sexual assault allegations from a volunteer.

The Murphys also drew scrutiny for donations made by their private family foundation in the run-up to the governor’s first campaign in 2017. The Philip and Tammy Murphy Family Foundation doled out more than $15.7 million in gifts and grants from 1998 through 2017, according to federal tax filings. But the foundation's giving more than doubled in 2013, from $445,750 the year before to a little more than $1 million.

Between August 2013 and July 2015, the Murphy foundation donated $3.76 million, according to an analysis of tax filings. The foundation's giving dropped off in the years since the governor declared his candidacy. From August 2016 to December 2017, the foundation gave a combined $768,800, according to tax records.

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Virginia native, mother and finance executive

Tammy Murphy, a native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, has never held elected office. She worked with her now-husband in the late 1980s at Goldman Sachs before spending several years working overseas at the banking firm Investcorp.

The Murphys first met in 1987, but they didn’t go on their first date until seven years later. They were engaged 18 days after that and have been married for three decades.

She left the professional sphere to raise their four children and now lists her occupation as a “homemaker” on tax filings, but she has maintained an active calendar. She is a charter member of former Vice President Al Gore's Climate Reality Action Fund.

She has served, or does serve, on a long list of boards and organizations, including at the University of Virginia, Tisch College at Tufts University, Phillips Academy Andover, the Monmouth Medical Center Foundation, Rumson Country Day School, the Monmouth Conservation Foundation and Count Basie Center for the Arts.

She is also co-owner and chair of Gotham FC, the women’s professional soccer team based in Harrison.

Even before the governor took office, the Murphys had a professional relationship. They founded 2nd Floor, a youth helpline in Monmouth County, and during Phil Murphy’s tenure as U.S. ambassador to Germany, Tammy Murphy learned German so she could speak to groups and entertain guests.

When they returned to the States, they launched a think tank, New Start New Jersey, which served as Phil Murphy's platform to develop a public profile before running for governor. Tammy Murphy was also prominent during the campaign — hitting the trail, raising money and proofreading documents — and led his inaugural committee after he was elected.

Murphy grew up as a Republican and supported the party well into adulthood. She has donated to the campaigns of prominent Republicans on a state and national level.

Bob Menendez responds to Tammy Murphy running

Among the harshest critics of the Murphys on Wednesday was the state's senior senator. In a statement, Menendez noted that Phil Murphy "rushed to judgment and called on me to resign" before saying "it was clear he had a personal, vested interest in doing so."

"Governor Murphy has said he won’t appoint his wife to the seat, but why would he since there was never a need to? They believe they have to answer to nobody, but I am confident that the people of New Jersey will push back against this blatant maneuver at disenfranchisement," Menendez said.

Though Menendez has yet to formally declare whether he intends to seek reelection, he also said he will "gladly put up my record of success on behalf of the people of New Jersey against anyone and am confident that when all the facts have been presented and my innocence proven, I’ll continue to do what I’ve always done for the past 30-plus years — deliver results for the people of New Jersey."

Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Tammy Murphy, NJ first lady, to run for US Senate seat