New Jersey U.S. Senate Voter Guide: Booker, Murphy, Fernandez and Kuniansky on the Economy and the Iran War
Four candidates are on the Nov. 3 ballot for U.S. Senate in New Jersey, according to the New Jersey Division of Elections' official candidate list: Democratic Sen. Cory Booker, Republican Justin Murphy, Veronica Fernandez, running under the "End the Corruption!" designation, and Socialist Workers Party candidate Joanne Kuniansky. The Digital Free Press voter guide video compares where all four stand on the economy and affordability and on the war with Iran.
Booker, a former Newark mayor, is seeking a third full term. Murphy, a Burlington County attorney and Navy veteran, is a former Tabernacle Township deputy mayor, according to WHYY and the New Jersey Monitor. Fernandez, of Long Valley, is a former property casualty insurance underwriter who calls herself an independent progressive. Kuniansky, of West New York, is a longtime union activist and a Socialist Workers Party member since 1977, WHYY reported.
Why the Economy and the Iran War Are Issues in New Jersey's Senate Race
The war with Iran, which began Feb. 28, has dominated the race. It produced the most heated exchange at Booker and Murphy's only debate, held Oct. 8 at Rider University and sponsored by the New Jersey Globe, the Globe reported. At the time of the debate, the Globe reported, the war had led to the deaths of 18 U.S. service members and had pushed gasoline prices up, with the average price of regular gas in New Jersey at $4.27 a gallon at the time of the debate, compared with $3.03 a year earlier, according to AAA.
On the economy, the TDFP video says Booker proposes making the first $75,000 of household income tax-free for most filers and expanding the child tax credit. It says Murphy would abolish the IRS, adopt a 10 to 12 percent flat income tax and repeal capital gains and estate taxes. It says Fernandez calls for a working-class Congress to address rising living costs and supports overturning Citizens United, and that Kuniansky backs union-scale public works jobs, a shorter workweek without pay cuts and automatic cost-of-living increases.
On the Iran war, the video says Booker opposes the war and says he will not vote for further funding to continue it. It says Murphy supports U.S. military operations and continued pressure on Tehran, saying the Iranian regime needs to go. It says Fernandez opposes the war, calling it unnecessary and unaffordable, and that Kuniansky opposes the U.S. war as imperialist while calling Israel's war defensive and defending its right to exist as a refuge for Jews.
Cory Booker (Democrat)
On the economy, Booker told WHYY: "For working people like my neighbors, the American dream is feeling out of reach because they can't afford to get by, let alone get ahead." He is pushing the Keep Your Pay Act, which WHYY reported would make the first $75,000 of household income tax-free for most filers and expand the child tax credit. The Yale Budget Lab's analysis of the bill says it would permanently raise the maximum child tax credit to $4,320 a year for young children. Booker also said he continues to oppose President Donald Trump's tariffs.
On the Iran war, Booker told WHYY: "The Iran War will go down in history as one of the most consequentially stupid decisions an American president has ever made." He said he supports efforts to stop the war and added: "I will not vote for a single dollar to continue this conflict." At the Oct. 8 debate, he said the president "invaded Iran, and now he is stuck in another Middle East quagmire costing us all," the New Jersey Globe reported.
Justin Murphy (Republican)
On the economy, Murphy's campaign website says: "I advocate abolishing the Internal Revenue Code and enacting a Flat-Tax rate of 10% – 12%, to promote the economic growth needed in coming decades." It adds: "I believe we should abolish the capital gains tax in its entirety, all estate and death taxes (when you leave this life, the IRS should not follow you), and the AMT."
On the Iran war, Murphy said at the Oct. 8 debate that the U.S. was right to go into Iran. "Finish it," he said, according to the New Jersey Globe. "Finish that war in a positive manner." He added: "If Iran obtains a nuclear weapon, what an unbelievable and unmitigated disaster that would be. … Stay the course. Get it done right." WHYY reported that Murphy supports continued pressure on Tehran and said in an interview that "the Iranian regime needs to be long gone." He told the Washington Examiner that American politicians have to "get over the fear of uttering the words regime change."
Veronica Fernandez (End the Corruption!)
On the economy, Fernandez told WHYY: "I fill up my car for $65, then in the supermarket, the specials for meat are $18.99 a pound. The economy is not working, and in order to fix that we need a working-class Congress." She supports efforts to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision, WHYY reported, and her campaign website says the ruling "opened the flood gates for corruption and put OUR congress up for sale."
On the Iran war, Fernandez told WHYY she is strongly opposed to it: "It was completely unnecessary, we don't have the money for it." She added: "Donald Trump has bankrupted casinos, he's bankrupting our country, adding to the deficit while enriching himself. No, I don't support the war in Iran."
Joanne Kuniansky (Socialist Workers Party)
On the economy, Kuniansky supports a public works program to provide jobs at union-scale wages building hospitals, child care centers and other infrastructure, and a shorter workweek with no cut in pay, WHYY reported. "We demand automatic cost-of-living increases in union contracts, pensions, and social security," she told WHYY.
On the Iran war, Kuniansky told WHYY it is "an imperialist war by the U.S. rulers to plunder oil, gas and labor of the region." She also called it "a defensive war by Israel to prevent the Jew-hating regime in Tehran from developing nuclear weapons," and said: "Defend Israel's right to exist as a refuge for Jews!"
Where to Follow the Candidates
Cory Booker: @CoryBooker on X. Justin Murphy: @JerseyJustinUSA on X and jerseyjustin4senate.org. Veronica Fernandez: @Veronica4Senate on X and veronicaforsenate.com. Joanne Kuniansky: Socialist Workers Party campaign coverage in The Militant.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. New Jersey voters can check their registration and find their polling place through the New Jersey Division of Elections at nj.gov/state/elections. This guide is for information only; The Digital Free Press does not endorse any candidate.
Yossi Schmidt, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Digital Free Press
Hold Everyone Accountable.
Sources: New Jersey Division of Elections, Official List, Candidates for U.S. Senate, General Election Nov. 3, 2026: https://www.nj.gov/state/elections/assets/pdf/election-results/2026/2026-official-general-candidates-us-senate.pdf ; WHYY, New Jersey election 2026: Cory Booker faces 3 challengers in U.S. Senate race (Sept. 22, 2026): https://whyy.org/articles/election-2026-new-jersey-senate-voter-guide-booker/ ; New Jersey Globe, Senate candidates Booker and Murphy clash over Iran War in Globe debate (Oct. 8, 2026): https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/senate-candidates-booker-and-murphy-clash-over-iran-war-in-globe-debate/ ; New Jersey Monitor, U.S. Senate race details: https://newjerseymonitor.com/race-details/u-s-senate-2026/ ; Washington Examiner, Meet the GOP Senate candidate who wants the Iran war to continue (Oct. 20, 2026): https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/congressional/4770277/republican-senate-candidate-new-jersey-justin-murphy-trump-iran-war/ ; Murphy for U.S. Senate: https://jerseyjustin4senate.org/ ; Veronica for Senate: https://veronicaforsenate.com/ ; The Yale Budget Lab, Senator Booker's Keep Your Pay Act: https://budgetlab.yale.edu/research/senator-bookers-keep-your-pay-act ; The Militant, Join SWP in drive to expand reach of 'Militant' (Sept. 25, 2026): https://themilitant.com/2026/09/25/join-swp-in-drive-to-expand-reach-of-militant-books-party-building-fund/
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