Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy is taking a trip to Israel next week to discuss economic ties between the Middle East country and New Jersey.
Murphy will be in Israel from Wednesday to Friday and plans to meet business leaders and the Tel Aviv mayor, according to his campaign. It will be his fifth trip to Israel and he will be joined by his wife, Tammy, and their four children.
The candidate — a former U.S. ambassador to Germany from 2009 to 2013 — is scheduled to meet with the heads of technology and information security firms iHLS and Team8 and officials from the American-Israel Chamber of Commerce. He will also visit the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and the University of Haifa.
A former Goldman Sachs executive, Murphy will also visit with “existing contacts across various sectors.”
“New Jersey and Israel are inextricably linked, both culturally and economically, and strengthening those ties will benefit both sides,” Murphy said in a statement. “Growing our economy not only means creating jobs at home, but also nurturing new markets and taking advantage of opportunities around the world. As one of our state’s top trade partners, Israel is well-positioned to play a leading role in our economic future.”
New Jersey and Israel produce $1 billion in shared annual economic activity, including $412.5 million in exports from New Jersey in 2016, according to Murphy’s campaign.
Murphy is running against Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno in the Nov. 7 general election, and is favored to win the race by a range of political analysts.
