(New York) American Democratic Party senator Robert Menendez, on trial since mid-May for corruption in New York, will run for re-election in November as an independent, according to documents made public Monday.
Elected from New Jersey in the eastern United States, the influential Democratic senator is accused of corruption and influence peddling for the benefit of Egypt and Qatar, as well as obstruction of the exercise of justice and acting as an agent of a foreign government.
He faces up to 20 years in prison.
At 70, the veteran of American politics, elected to Congress for 30 years, will run under the banner “Menendez for the Senate” and has obtained 2,465 signatures from the public, much more than the 800 necessary for a candidacy.
Pursued since September with his wife Nadine Menendez – who will be tried in July for health reasons – and three alleged accomplices, this hawk of the right wing of the Democratic Party in matters of diplomacy, is targeted by around twenty charges.
Bob Menendez is still a member of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but is no longer its chairman.
Appearing alongside him are businessmen Wael Hana and Fred Daibes who also plead not guilty. A third man, José Uribe, pleaded guilty to part of the prosecution and is collaborating with the courts.
The Menendez couple is accused of having accepted “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in bribes, in cash or gold bars, between 2018 and 2022. This in exchange for his influence to support Cairo and “protect and enrich” the three businessmen of his state of New Jersey where nine million inhabitants live, including a large diaspora from the Middle East.
Andy Kim, who will be the Democratic Party candidate for New Jersey for the Senate, reacted on X: “Everyone knows that Bob Menendez is not running for families [du New Jersey]. He shows up for himself.”