But Menendez is leading by just six points in the most recent poll last month, and his seat is rated as only “leaning Democratic” by the Real Clear Politics website. No one would have thought the incumbent would have to be waging such an aggressive defense of his seat, given New Jersey is a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 920,000 registered voters and where voters have not elected a Republican to the Senate in 46 years. It is this record that Menendez has based much of his campaign on. The company has been criticized for roughly doubling over seven years the price of Revlimid, one of Celgene’s drugs to treat multiple myeloma, to about $20,000 for a supply of 28 pills.

Additionally, three drug companies have sued Celgene for refusing to supply them with samples of the two cancer drugs so they could manufacture cheaper generic versions. Celgene paid $280 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower that contended the firm improperly marketed two drugs to treat a host of cancers without getting Federal Drug Administration approval. While Hugin’s campaign boasts of his tenure at the company, his legacy is providing ammunition for his opponent. Marine Corps, got a master’s in business administration degree, joined investment banking firm JPMorgan Chase, and went on to spend 19 years at the Celgene pharmaceuticals company, eventually becoming its CEO before retiring in 2016. Menendez, 64, is the son of Cuban immigrants and a lawyer who worked his way up the Hudson County political ladder to the State House, House of Representatives, and U.S. WHYY thanks our sponsors - become a WHYY sponsorĪs unlikely as it may seem, the race not only pits two men named Bob, but also both hail from Union City. Republicans are trying to keep or expand their bare majority of 51 seats, while Democrats are fighting to defend the 26 seats they currently hold that are on this year’s ballot and pick up two more to take the majority. The stakes may be higher than usual this year, given the slim margin between the parties in the Senate. It’s the only debate to which they have agreed so far.

If the campaign continues in this vein, that might not happen until October 24, when they are scheduled to debate on NJTV. Neither candidate has given people much reason to vote for him, rather than against his opponent, thus far. Instead, the public is being treated to a nearly incessant loop of negative ads, some paid for by the candidates and others by third-party groups highly critical of one Bob or the other. Bob Menendez and Republican nominee and former pharmaceuticals executive Bob Hugin.

With less than six weeks before the election, there has been virtually no discussion of any substantive issues in the race between Democratic incumbent Sen. Senate race boils down to a choice between the crooked Bob or the greedy Bob. To the typical New Jersey resident, this year’s U.S.

Menendez hugin polls