US Senator Bob Menendez resigns after Egypt corruption conviction

US Senator Bob Menendez submitted his resignation on Tuesday in the aftermath of his conviction on corruption charges, including bribery and acting as an agent for Egypt's government, bowing to pressure from fellow Democrats to give up the job.

"I will be resigning from my office as the United States Senator from New Jersey, effective on the close of business on 20 August, 2024," Menendez's letter, which Reuters saw, said.

"While I fully intend to appeal the jury's verdict, all the way and including to the Supreme Court, I do not want the Senate to be involved in a lengthy process that will detract from its important work," the letter added.

Democratic New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy will appoint a replacement for Menendez, who has represented New Jersey in the Senate since 2006 and served as chairman of the influential Foreign Relations Committee before giving up that post after being charged last year.

Murphy stated that he had received the letter but did not provide details on when he would decide to name Menendez's temporary replacement. A spokesperson for Murphy did not reply to a request for details about the timing of the decision.

Menendez, 70, was found guilty on 16 July by a jury in Manhattan federal court on all 16 criminal counts he faced - also including obstruction of justice, wire fraud and extortion - after a nine-week trial. Two co-defendants also were convicted.

A message about the letter was read aloud on the Senate floor on Tuesday afternoon.

The case centred on what prosecutors called bribery schemes. The senator and his wife, Nadine Menendez, accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, gold bars, car and mortgage payments from three businessmen. In exchange, Menendez steered billions of dollars in US aid to Egypt and tried to influence the criminal prosecutions of two of the businessmen, prosecutors said. Menendez plans to appeal.

US District Judge Sidney Stein has set Menendez's sentencing for 29 October, a week before the 5 November US elections in which he is running as an independent in a bid for another six-year term in the Senate but is considered a long shot to win.

Menendez's resignation will temporarily reduce the Democratic majority in the Senate to 50-49 until Murphy's appointee is sworn in to finish what remains of Menendez's current six-year term, which ends in January. Democratic US Representative Andy Kim is running for the seat in November and is favoured to win in Democratic-leaning New Jersey.

Numerous Democrats, including Murphy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Cory Booker, New Jersey's other senator, had called for Menendez to resign.

The trial was Menendez's second after a 2017 trial ended when the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict. The Senate ethics committee then censured Menendez for accepting gifts from a wealthy longtime friend in exchange for official favours.

Menendez was first appointed to his Senate seat in 2006 after serving 13 years in the US House of Representatives. He then won election three times to the Senate. He earlier served in the New Jersey legislature and as a mayor.

For decades, he has been a forceful voice in American foreign relations, most recently advocating for additional aid to Ukraine and Israel. Democratic President Joe Biden pushed Congress to allocate more money to foreign allies embroiled in conflicts.

(Reuters)