NJ Gov. Phil Murphy praises wife's Senate run, says lame duck label makes him ‘laugh’

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday pushed back against characterizations that he is now a lame duck governor after his wife, first lady Tammy Murphy, abruptly suspended her campaign for Senate.

In his first public comments since she left the race on Sunday, the term-limited governor said he's "sprinting through the tape."

“When I see those headlines, I laugh,” Murphy told reporters at an unrelated press conference, referring to a POLITICO report that suggested he could have diminished influence in Trenton during his last 18 months in office.

“If you looked at my schedule right now, you would literally laugh at that statement with me," Murphy added. "We've got a lot more road to cover. And I'm running around the state today, yesterday, tomorrow, you name it.”

Tammy Murphy entered the Senate race in November to replace indicted incumbent Sen. Bob Menendez. She instantly became the favorite over Rep. Andy Kim due to her support from Democratic Party leaders in the state, as well as her high level of name recognition and ability to raise money.

But she lagged in polling and faced a string of losses for local endorsements to Kim, a three-term House member. Her candidacy came to an abrupt end on Sunday when she said that she did not want to continue what would have become a bitter primary against a fellow Democrat.

Kim is now the heavy favorite to win the Democratic primary. And if he does, he'll also be favored to win the general election in November since New Jersey hasn't elected a Republican to the Senate in more than 50 years.

“I'm incredibly proud of her — she went into this for the right reasons,” Phil Murphy said. “She stood for the right things. She worked her tail off, and it was a really tough decision for her. There’s very few people in this line of business who put party over self, and that's exactly what she did.”

The Senate race was dominated by discussion of the "county line," the primary ballot design unique to New Jersey. Candidates endorsed by county parties are placed in a single column or row on primary ballots, making them appear more prominently to voters and giving them a nearly insurmountable advantage.

Every county party differs in how the line is awarded. In some, a single party leader decides who gets the favorable ballot placement. In others, hundreds of low-level party officials vote by secret ballot on which candidate to support. Tammy Murphy had the favorable ballot positioning in a majority of the state due to her backing of party leaders in counties which are top down in their endorsement process.

Kim is leading a lawsuit against the ballot design system, and a federal judge may rule as soon as this week on whether to keep or change it.

Phil Murphy told reporters Tuesday that he still supports the county line system but that he’s open to tweaks.

“I frankly think the line has worked pretty well, and if progressives are out there trying to look at whether or not they got a good government over the past 6½ years, I'd like them to find a more progressive government in America ... with yours truly elected twice on the line in both cases,” he said.