Steve Sweeney, a Democratic power broker who had become the longest-serving New Jersey Senate president, was getting ready to hold what many expected to be his final term in the Senate before running for governor, capping an almost mythical career in Garden State politics. Then, the Nov. 2 election returns came in. Sweeney appears to have lost by about 2,000 votes to an unknown Republican sacrificial lamb, a shocking turnabout. The Washington Examiner spoke with the novice slingshotter, Edward Durr, who might just have felled Goliath.
Washington Examiner: What is your reaction to what you’ve accomplished?
Edward Durr: This is all new to me, and I still don’t know if it’s official. It’s kind of surreal.
WEX: Tell us about your background.
Durr: I’ve been a truck driver 25 years locally for a furniture company and drive locally, from Connecticut to South Jersey. I’ve lived in New Jersey all my life.
WEX: Why did you decide to run?
Durr: I was just tired of the politicians at hand and the lack of representation. I always wanted to see if I could make a difference. A few years back, I ran for the Assembly with a desire to have an input and a voice for the people. My [Republican] county chair asked me this year if I would be interested in taking on the Senate president. If there was ever a time to beat the man, this was the year.
WEX: You only spent about $150?
Durr: I don’t know where that came from. I spent about $5,000 to $6,000.
WEX: Maybe it was the amount contained in your first filing period.
Durr: Yes, maybe.
WEX: Did you have volunteers?
Durr: I had half a dozen or so people, friends on Twitter and people who didn’t live in the district. They helped me knock on doors. Maureen McCabe, put her name in there. She was a true supporter who stepped up and helped me and knocked on doors with me. I went out with our county commission candidates, and they worked with me.
WEX: Why did people vote for you?
Durr: Look up [Sweeney]; you will see the anger [toward] his actions. [Voters] didn’t like his cronyism, constantly controlling the county. If you do what he wants you to do, he will help you get a good job, and he always takes care of his cronyism groups.
The Democrats forced school vaccinations. People were using freedom, saying they don’t want their kid getting the shot. I’m against people being forced to do something against their will. It’s a personal choice — people should have it. We shouldn’t have a government say you have to do it or else, trying to force it down people’s throats. You need someone to fight for you, and that isn’t taking place in New Jersey.
WEX: What do you think ultimately did Sweeney in?
Durr: The main thing that did him in was the fact that he did absolutely nothing the past 18 months while the governor sat on his throne [proclaiming] what jobs, businesses, and stores were allowed to open. He decided what was essential and what wasn’t.
It’s not one thing, it’s a combination of everything. It’s the perfect storm that just took place over the past 18 months. Doing nothing and the governor doing all the things he did and the failures of the government.
It’s like David vs. Goliath. I look at it like all these factors are stones in my slingshot.
WEX: All of that sounds like California!
Durr: The governor keeps saying he wants to make New Jersey the California of the East Coast.
WEX: Did you have name recognition at all?
Durr: You would watch Monday Night Football, and a commercial would pop up talking about me. I wasn’t known at all, but the Senate president helped me become known by saying my name 6,000 times, and it registered in people’s heads. People would say, “Let me check this guy out,” and find it’s a bunch of lies.
He said I was against overtime. I’m a trucker who lives on overtime — how stupid do you have to be to say I’m against overtime?
What I hope to do is win [over] the people who weren’t sure about me to make sure I’m the right person for the job. I’m trying to keep my feet on the ground about this, but I feel very good. Don’t want to feel overconfident. But very happy. Something I worked very hard for.
WEX: Did you have money to do mailers?
Durr: I couldn’t afford mailers. I just bought palm cards and handed them out door to door.
I gave [voters] a bundle and shook their hand and talked to the people. I asked if they would come out and vote Nov. 2. They were very pleasant people. I did about 10,000-15,000 doors easily. I turned a lot of Democrats.
WEX: Is your area blue-collar?
Durr: We are very rural blue-collar. Farms, warehouses. My opponent always portrayed himself as the blue-collar guy. He’s a union vice president.
WEX: Your mother told me your father passed away two weeks ago. I am so sorry. Was he your biggest supporter?
Durr: My dad was my biggest supporter, he was somebody I could lean to, he inspired me. He was the epitome of the self-made man. He was praying for me and believed in me. … I am sharing this with him because I believe he is in heaven.
WEX: Are your parents Republicans?
Durr: Yes, they live next door to me. They were Kennedy Democrats, but we all switched to Reagan when we voted for him.
Tori Richards is an investigative reporter for the Washington Examiner.
