The Truck Driver Who Defeated the N.J. State Senate President With a Trivial Budget; Why Did He Run

 11/3/21 Newsweek:

Durr has never held political office, but was leading Sweeney by over 2,000 votes on Wednesday night despite running a barebones campaign that included spending only $153 during the primary. Sweeney, the longest-serving New Jersey Senate president, announced that he was postponing a meeting to determine the leaders of the next Senate session earlier in the day....

The $153 that Durr spent to secure the GOP nomination reportedly included about $66 spent at drinks and donuts at Dunkin. Durr estimated to Politico that less than $10,000 was spent on his candidacy overall, a small amount for a high-profile statewide office.

Durr, who has worked as a truck driver for the past 25 years, previously ran an unsuccessful campaign for a New Jersey General Assembly seat in 2019. He said that he was motivated to run for Sweeney's state Senate seat in 2021 by anger over being denied a concealed carry gun permit during an August interview with conservative commentator Elizabeth Nader.

"I was told flat-out by the local sheriff, 'Don't even bother.' And that kind of angered me," said Durr. "I've never been arrested and I couldn't get a concealed carry? ... That really angered me, so I looked into what can you do to get into politics."