One of my favorite stories from the elections this past Tuesday is that of Edward Durr. He is a furniture company truck driver for Raymour & Flanigan who ran against New Jersey’s longtime state Senate president — Democrat Steve Sweeney — and has apparently won. Sweeney has yet to concede. He wants to “wait for the final results.”
However, the excellent New York Times story reports the outcome as a done deal based on the AP’s call yesterday morning. The AP called the race on Thursday morning with Durr holding a 2,298-vote lead over Sweeney and all precincts counted.
The AP story on the race is also worth a look. The AP quotes Durr speaking Wednesday afternoon: “I joked with people and I said, ‘I’m going to shock the world, I’m going to beat this man.’ I was saying it, but really kind of joking. Because what chance did a person like me really stand against this man? He’s literally the second-most powerful person in the state of New Jersey.”
First reports indicated that Durr’s campaign spending was limited to $153, nearly half of it at Dunkin’ Donuts. In its story on Durr’s victory, however, the AP sets Durr’s campaign spending at $2,300. The Times adds the piquant detail that Durr’s campaign video was shot on a smartphone (and provides a link to the video below). In its own way this is an inspirational story reflecting the present discontents. It is David versus Goliath, American style.
The correct current totals in Durr/Sweeney are as listed by @DecisionDeskHQ. pic.twitter.com/evNesc86ZJ
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) November 3, 2021
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