Oscar winner joins fellow Edison native, citing Booker's support for Trump, 50+ billionaire backers, & many policy failures.

Academy Award-winning actress Susan Sarandon has endorsed Lisa McCormick in the Democratic primary election for U.S. Senate, citing the progressive challenger’s moral clarity and courage to oppose entrenched incumbents who have broken faith with New Jersey voters.

Sarandon, a native of Edison Township who graduated from Edison High School in 1964, donated to McCormick’s campaign and voiced her support for the insurgent challenge to Sen. Cory Booker in the June 2 primary.

“Susan Sarandon grew up in the same Middlesex County community as I did, and she has spent her life standing up for what is right, whether on a movie set or on the front lines of social justice,” said McCormick, who graduated from JP Stevens High School in 1987. “Her support sends a clear message: New Jersey is ready for a senator who will fight for working families, not billionaires who have funded Cory Booker’s career."

Academy Award-winning actress Susan Sarandon has endorsed Lisa McCormick in the Democratic primary election for U.S. Senate

Sarandon previously backed McCormick’s 2018 primary campaign against then-Sen. Bob Menendez, who was later convicted on 16 federal corruption charges and sentenced to 11 years in prison.

In that race, McCormick captured nearly 160,000 votes against the scandal-plagued incumbent despite being written off by party leaders and major media outlets.

Winning two of five ballots cast in that race, McCormick's 2018 share of the vote outpaced the percentage Bernie Sanders earned in New Jersey's 2016 primary.

The endorsement highlights the alignment between Sarandon’s decades of activism and McCormick’s platform.

Both women campaigned for John Kerry in 2004, endorsed Barack Obama in 2008, and supported Bernie Sanders in the 2016 presidential primary.

Sarandon was arrested in 2018 during a protest against the Trump administration’s family separation policy at the Hart Senate Office Building, where she joined hundreds of women demanding an end to migrant detentions.

“New Jersey deserves a senator with a moral compass,” said James Devine, a spokesperson for the McCormick campaign. “While Booker supported a right-wing government accused of war crimes, Lisa McCormick stands for a foreign policy rooted in human rights and justice. The political wind has shifted—it’s time our leadership did, too.”

McCormick’s campaign has sharply criticized Booker’s voting record, noting that he was the only Democrat to vote for the confirmation of Charles Kushner as U.S. ambassador to France.

Kushner, a convicted felon pardoned by President Donald Trump, faced unanimous opposition from every other Democratic senator.

Booker also voted to confirm several of Trump’s Cabinet nominees, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

On matters of war and peace, McCormick has accused Booker of enabling human suffering.

She points to his votes to approve weapons sales to Israel, including shipments of 1,000-pound bombs, even as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced millions.

Booker has also voted against efforts to block such arms transfers, drawing criticism from progressives who argue he has abandoned the party’s principles.

“When families in Gaza faced starvation and bombs, Cory Booker had a choice,” Devine said. “He chose to send more weapons and pose for a photo with Benjamin Netanyahu.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Senator Cory Booker.

Sarandon has been equally outspoken on the issue.

During a press conference in Barcelona on Friday ahead of the 40th Goya Awards, the actress spoke candidly about struggling to find work in the American film industry.

"I was fired by my agency specifically for marching and speaking out about Gaza — for asking for a ceasefire — and it became impossible for me to even be on television," Sarandon said. "I don't know lately if it's changed, [but] I couldn't do any major film, anything connected with Hollywood."

After United Talent Agency dropped Sarandon as a client in November 2023 after she spoke at a pro-Palestine rally, the Rocky Horror Picture Show actress said that since then, she has only been able to act in Europe.

"I found agents ultimately in England and in Italy, and I have worked there," said the Thelma & Louise star. "I just did a film in Italy, and I did a play at the Old Vic for a number of months."

In 2021, she tweeted her support for Palestinians “fighting against the apartheid government of Netanyahu,” while expressing hope that Israelis “too, will enjoy peace.”

McCormick is running on a platform that includes replacing Sen. Chuck Schumer as majority leader, imposing a $100 million cap on personal wealth, and prosecuting fossil fuel executives who lied about climate change.

Her “Democrats for Change” slate includes candidates for Congress who have pledged to reject corporate PAC money and advocate for working-class New Jerseyans.

Sarandon’s endorsement adds a prominent voice to that movement.

A UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 1999 and recipient of the Action Against Hunger Humanitarian Award, she has been nominated for seven Emmys and 10 Golden Globes over a career that includes iconic films such as Stepmom, Dead Man Walking, and Bull Durham, and countless other titles.

“Lisa McCormick is not afraid to tell the truth, even when it makes powerful people uncomfortable,” said a campaign spokesperson. “That’s exactly the kind of leadership we need in the Senate.”

The Democratic primary election is scheduled for June 2.

Voters can learn more about McCormick’s campaign at DemocratsFor.US as well as the rest of her “Democrats for Change” team.