New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez's Senate career came to a close Tuesday, capping roughly five decades in Democratic politics that took him from the local school board to chair of the influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee, just over a month after a jury convicted him on federal bribery charges. Menendez signaled his resignation would take effect at the end of the day Tuesday in a letter last month to Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, who said Friday he's tapping a former top aide to succeed the three-term incumbent, the AP reports. CBS News reports that the resignation was effective at 5pm.
George Helmy will succeed Menendez until the November election results for the Senate seat are certified late in the month, the governor said. At that point, Murphy said Helmy will resign and he'll name the winner of the election to the seat. The stakes in the Senate election are high, with Democrats holding on to a narrow majority. Republicans have not won a Senate election in Democratic-leaning New Jersey in over five decades. Democratic Rep. Andy Kim and Republican hotel developer Curtis Bashaw are facing off in the general election. Menendez filed to run as an independent but withdrew his candidacy last week.
Menendez denied the bribery allegations, and in a letter to Murphy last month, he said he's planning to appeal the conviction. On Monday, he filed paperwork with the court seeking an acquittal and new trial, arguing that prosecutors presented speculation and that they violated his right as a lawmaker to protected speech and debate. The 70-year-old is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 29 and could face a maximum sentence of 222 years in prison, CBS reports.
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