This truck driver just defeated New Jersey’s most powerful lawmaker!
New Jersey state Senate President Steve Sweeney has lost his seat in a stunning upset to Republican newcomer Edward Durr, who spent $153.31 on his campaign.
Sweeney has served in the Senate since 2002 and as president since 2010.
“The main thing that did him in was the fact that he did absolutely nothing the past 18 months while the governor sat on his throne about what jobs, businesses, and stores were allowed to open. He decided what was essential and what wasn’t,” Durr shared.
The election in South Jersey’s 3rd Legislative District was the biggest shocker of all — and one with massive implications for the future of New Jersey politics. Sweeney, who’s led the state’s upper legislative chamber for 12 years, was talked up in Democratic circles as a likely 2025 candidate for governor.
Durr has never held elective office and ran unsuccessfully for a state Assembly seat in 2019. He raised less than $10,000 in his campaign against Sweeney, according to campaign finance records.
On his bare-bones campaign website, he describes himself as “blue collar” and says he has been a commercial truck driver for 25 years. A Durr campaign video opens with the candidate stepping down from his truck and discussing the toll that coronavirusrestrictions have taken on small businesses.
