Without any fanfare, NJ-04 GOP primary hopeful Mike Blasi ended his congressional campaign on Friday.
“My love for District 4 and commitment to unseating Chris Smith are what led me into this race,” Blasi explained in an email blast. “These reasons are also why I have made the difficult decision to suspend my congressional campaign. I want to see progress on the issues that I know matter to the people of this district. This race has never been about me. Having three candidates in the race guarantees Chris Smith an easy victory. As upsetting as this is, I will always do what is in the best interest of the people of District 4.”
Several GOP candidates initially joined the primary after Donald Trump called for challengers to take on the long-time incumbent Chris Smith after Smith voted for a controversial infrastructure bill.
A subsequent combination of voluntary departures and petition challenges shrunk the field of Smith primary opponents to two:
Mike Crispi, a conservative podcaster, and former FBI agent Steve Gray.
Crispi (severely outraised by Smith) is backed by Roger Stone, and his supporters continue to hope that Donald Trump decides to issue an 11th hour endorsement in the race.
