Justin Murphy claimed the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate Tuesday, defeating three primary opponents in his bid to unseat incumbent Sen. Cory Booker (D) in November, the Associated Press projects.
Murphy, an attorney who once sat on the township committee of Tabernacle in Burlington County, faces an uphill climb. New Jersey voters have not sent a Republican to the Senate since 1972.
Booker, a three-term incumbent with a national profile who has previously run for president, enters the general election with a massive financial advantage. As of mid-May, Booker was sitting on $22 million in campaign funds. The candidates in Tuesday’s Republican primary raised about $225,000 total this cycle.
Booker, who may seek the presidency again in 2028, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary Tuesday.
