NJ governor: 'County line' battle wasn't why Tammy Murphy dropped from Senate race

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says the debate around the state’s controversial “county line” primary ballot system was not a “material factor” in first lady Tammy Murphy’s decision to end her campaign for U.S. Senate.

“That was not the issue,” Phil Murphy said Wednesday night, during his first appearance on WNYC’s “Ask Governor Murphy” call-in show since his wife dropped out of the race. “I'd love you to sit with her and for her to confirm that, but that was not the issue.”

During the interview, the governor insisted that Tammy Murphy — who was trailing the frontrunner, Rep. Andy Kim, in polls when she dropped out — had a path to victory, but continuing her campaign would have “blown the place up, line or no line.”

Before she ended her candidacy, Tammy Murphy told party leadership she didn’t want to create an ugly intra-party war among Democratic candidates and feared one would happen if she continued to run. The night she dropped out, she said the same to voters in a video message.

The governor said on Wednesday night that, if his wife had stayed in the race, “either she would spend, her campaign would spend, or the other campaigns would spend“ a lot of money on fellow Democrats.

Tammy Murphy dropped out of the race after meeting with several county Democratic committee chairs at the law office of Angelo Genova. The Newark attorney was representing several of the 19 county clerks who fought in court to keep the county line ballot system when Kim sued to end it, arguing it gave Murphy an unfair advantage. Somerset Democratic committee Chairwoman Peg Schaffer, who attended the meeting, said Genova was primarily there to talk about how chairs could award the line to Kim after previously committing to Murphy. Schaffer said she didn't know anything about discussions around the county line court case, telling Gothamist, “I have no idea. I’m not involved in that.”

That week, attorneys for some of the clerks argued in court hearings that with Tammy Murphy out of the race, Kim's challenge was essentially moot — but failed to convince the judge

The first lady still hasn’t endorsed a candidate in the race, in which contestants are vying to replace federally indicted incumbent Democrat Sen. Bob Menendez. Besides Kim, activists Lawrence Hamm and Patricia Campos-Medina are also still running for the party’s nomination. The Republican primary will feature a contest between hotel entrepreneur Curtis Bashaw and Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner.

Wednesday marked the governor’s first appearance on the show since a judge granted an injunction sought by Kim and two Democratic candidates for Congress to strike the use of the county line in the 2024 Democratic primary. The county line system groups primary candidates endorsed by political organizations into slates on the ballot, signaling to voters which candidates the organizations deem legitimate and pairing them with high-profile figures, such as the incumbent president. The system, which no other state uses, was set to be used by 19 of New Jersey’s 21 counties in this year’s race.

Tammy Murphy stood to benefit from the line in some of the state’s largest and most Democrat-heavy counties, because in many cases party leaders awarded her the placement directly without a vote among members. That prompted protest among many rank-and-file Democrats at county conventions, where they argued she had an unfair advantage conferred by political elites with an interest in remaining in the governor’s good graces.

County clerks in many counties are now scrambling to redesign their ballots before the June primary, even as the Camden County Democratic Committee and some Republican groups appeal the judge’s decision to bar the system in this year’s primary. The case returns to court on Friday.

The governor said on Wednesday that the line was an “obscure” issue. “I think it's ridiculous the amount of airtime it's gotten,” he said. “I just think it's a fly-speck issue that people have conflated with Donald Trump and others and made this about an assault on democracy.”

The governor also defended the role of party organizations responsible for awarding the county line. He noted they focus on finding strong candidates and getting out the vote, and added that the line isn’t their only tool to engage voters.

“It’s one element, it’s almost a tactical piece that’s been mistaken for the broad strategy for who we are as a Democratic Party,” he said.

Shortly before the judge shot down use of the county line in this year’s Democratic primary, legislative leaders from both parties said they were open to redesigning New Jersey’s ballots but the matter shouldn’t be decided by the courts. Those same leaders have benefited from county line placements in their own races.

The governor said a potential ballot redesign was a “laudable” idea. When show host and WNYC reporter Nancy Solomon asked if that amounted to “foxes guarding the henhouse,” he responded: “I could say the same thing about ‘why should a judge get involved?’” since judges are appointed by elected officials.

“Who’s to say one route is more pure than another?” the governor said. “I think the legislators have every right to be looking at this.”

It remains unclear how much of an effect the court’s injunction will have moving forward, with the appeal and another related case still in the courts. And the decision so far only affects ballots for the 2024 Democratic primary in June. GOP ballots are unaffected by the ruling, and what will happen in 2025 is an open question.

This story has been updated to include details about a meeting between Tammy Murphy, Democratic county committee chairs and an attorney who defended against Andy Kim's lawsuit challenging the county line ballot system. (edited)