Donald Trump’s Candidate Handed Election Loss in New Jersey

A Republican Senate candidate endorsed by former President Donald Trump has been handily defeated in a New Jersey primary election.

Christine Serrano Glassner, currently serving as Mendham Borough mayor, was endorsed by the former president during a rally in New Jersey last month. She lost the race to become the GOP candidate by a wide margin to hotel operator Curtis Bashaw on Tuesday night, according to the Associated Press.

Bashaw will face off against indicted incumbent Senator Bob Menendez and U.S. Representative Andy Kim in November. Kim won the Democratic primary on Tuesday, while fellow Democrat Menendez on Monday filed to run as an independent as he fights federal bribery charges.

The Context

Trump praised Serrano Glassner and touted what he claimed was an “unblemished” record of endorsing winning candidates while backing her at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, on May 11.

“Candidate for Senate Christine Serrano Glassner, she’s a fantastic woman,” Trump said. “Look, you know what? My record is very unblemished for support. I’m giving her my complete and total endorsement … You’re going to do great!”

The former president went on to say that he “got to know” Serrano Glassner due to her husband, Republican consultant Michael Glassner, working for the Trump campaign since he launched his political career in 2015.

Trump said that he “immediately” decided to endorse Serrano Glassner after learning that her opponent Bashaw was “a Christie person”—referring to former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a former Trump ally who has become a staunch critic.

“I wanted to stay out of the race, but her husband’s been so good, she’s been such a tremendous person,” he said. “But then they said her [foe] is a Christie person. I said, ‘I’m endorsing you immediately.’ So, good luck, keep my record intact.”

Trump does not have a flawless endorsement record. Many political analysts cited the failure of high-profile Trump-endorsed Senate candidates in the 2022 midterm elections, including Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and Herschel Walker in Georgia, as a reason for the GOP losing control of the chamber to Democrats.

Candidates endorsed by Trump in key races have also lost more recently. Last week, Republican Texas State House Speaker Dade Phelan, who led last year’s Texas House impeachment of state Attorney General Ken Paxton, survived a primary challenge from Trump-backed candidate David Covey.

What We Know

Serrano Glassner was suffering a double-digit loss to Bashaw in the Republican primary at the time of publication, with candidates Justin Murphy and Albert Harshaw trailing even further behind, according to the Associated Press (AP).

In a post to X, formerly Twitter, Bashaw wrote that it was an “honor to accept the Republican nomination for United States Senate in New Jersey” on Tuesday night, promising to usher in “the start of real change.”

“We will take the battle to Andy Kim and the Democrats,” he added. “From Sussex to Salem, from Hudson to Hunterdon, from Bergen to Burlington. We will work together, and fight together to defeat the entrenched Democrat monopoly.”

We will take the battle to Andy Kim and the Democrats. From Sussex to Salem, from Hudson to Hunterdon, from Bergen to Burlington.

We will work together, and fight together to defeat the entrenched Democrat monopoly.  

For all of New Jersey families, for our future generations,…

— Curtis Bashaw (@Bashawforsenate) June 5, 2024

In the Democratic primary, Kim crushed opponents Patricia Campos-Medina and Lawrence Hamm, with the AP tally showing the congressman taking more than 75 percent of the vote at the time of publication.

Views

Newsweek reached out for comment to Trump’s office via email on Tuesday night.

While Serrano Glassner had not weighed in on the election outcome at the time of publication, several Trump critics took to social media to mock the former president for apparently failing to sway New Jersey Republicans.

“Trump endorsed Christine Serrano-Glassner just lost by 10 points. SAD!” the Republicans Against Trump account wrote on X.

“In other news, Trump endorsed Christine Serrano Glassner, and she lost,” wrote @cbouzy. “Trump is not a kingmaker, nor is he an electoral juggernaut.”

In other news, Trump endorsed Christine Serrano Glassner, and she lost. Trump is not a kingmaker, nor is he an electoral juggernaut. pic.twitter.com/49U1CXd4dx

— Christopher Bouzy (spoutible.com/cbouzy) (@cbouzy) June 5, 2024

“BREAKING: Trump-backed candidate for New Jersey’s Republican Senate primary, Christine Serrano Glassner, loses big, in the latest sign of weakness for Trump’s candidacy,” liberal news outlet MeidasTouch wrote.

BREAKING: Trump-backed candidate for New Jersey’s Republican Senate primary, Christine Serrano Glassner, loses big, in the latest sign of weakness for Trump’s candidacy. https://t.co/kjqVdu2lFV

— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) June 5, 2024

Another Trump-backed candidate fared far better in a U.S. Senate primary race on Tuesday. In Montana, Trump-endorsed Tim Sheehy overwhelmingly defeated his opponents, taking 75 percent of the vote at the time of publication.

Sheehy will face off against incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Tester in November, who also won his primary race by a wide margin on Tuesday. Tester’s seat is considered one of the most vulnerable for Democrats, as Montana otherwise tends to heavily vote Republican.

“Congratulations to Trump-endorsed @SheehyforMT on his MASSIVE primary victory in Montana,” conservative influencer Alex Bruesewitz wrote on X. “Now time to beat far-left Jon Tester!”

What’s Next

Although Democrats would normally be strong favorites to retain New Jersey’s Senate seat, the decision by Menendez to remain a candidate as an independent may give Republicans a realistic chance of flipping the seat.

Kim on Tuesday characterized the incumbent’s decision to stay in the race as selfish and denounced “the chaos and corruption of Bob Menendez and Donald Trump,” according to AP.

Democrats are likely facing an uphill battle to retain overall control of the U.S. Senate in November, as the seats in contention this year draw a highly favorable map for Republicans.