Veteran trucker stuns as he stands on the verge of improbable Senate win in New Jersey

A long-time truck driver is poised to capture an extraordinary upset victory over a career politician in the New Jersey Senate.

Truck driver Edward Durr, 58, is currently leading New Jersey Senate President Steve Sweeney in the Third legislative district by more than 2,000 votes with more than 99% of precincts reporting. The Associated Press has not yet declared an official winner.

Durr, a Republican, is a furniture truck driver employed by Raymour & Flanagan. He has driven trucks for over 25 years. He has never served in public office before.

You can see Durr stepping out of a truck in the campaign ad below.

Sweeney, a Democrat, is the longest-tenured Senate president in New Jersey history, having served in that capacity since 2010.

Durr spent only a few thousand dollars — some of it out of his own pocket — on his grassroots campaign for office. His campaign video was filmed on a friend’s iPhone.

Durr’s campaign criticized New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy for economic damage caused by COVID-19 lockdowns. He’s promised to cultivate a “pro-business environment” if elected.

“I didn’t beat him. We beat him. The state of New Jersey, the people of New Jersey beat him. They listened to what I had to say and I listened to what they had to say, and it’s a repudiation of Governor Murphy [who] went and locked us down and ignored the people’s voice and senator Sweeney chose to do nothing for those 18 months,” Durr said on Fox News Primetime on Wednesday.

In the interview below, Durr reacted to the improbable election results.