The anointed choice to be the next Democratic congressman from Hudson County is the son of Sen. Robert Menendez.

And one of those leading the charge to endorse Robert Menendez Jr. as a replacement for Albio Sires has been Phil Murphy himself.

This type of thing is not unique. Both parties play the same game. If you don’t believe that, just realize that Republican party regulars are backing Tom Kean Jr. for Congress in CD-7.

But unlike Kean, who’s been in the state Legislature for almost 20 years, the youthful Menendez has been nowhere – at least in terms of elected office.

So it was natural for Murphy to be asked about endorsing Menendez Jr. today at his regular briefing.

His answer was that he knows Menendez independent of his father. The governor, in fact, appointed him to the board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

“They are indeed father and son, but I know each is their own person,” Murphy said, adding that, ‘I am honored to have endorsed him.”

Regardless of what happens in the months ahead, Menendez Jr. seems a sure bet – to say the least – to win the seat. The question is if any reputable Democrat in the district will surface to condemn this common, although extreme, brand of political nepotism.

That wasn’t the only political issue to pop up today.

Since the governor’s last briefing two weeks ago, John Wallace, the chair of the state redistricting commission, has picked the Democratic map, thereby putting the Dems in good position to win at least nine of the state’s 12 House seats. They now hold 10 of them.

Republicans have asked the state Supreme Court to throw out the new map. They seem most irked by Wallace’s flippant-sounding statement that he picked the Democrats’ map because the Republicans’ map was selected 10 years ago.

What does Murphy think about that?

He’s not saying.

The governor offered no comment on Wallace’s decision, saying only, “he was the right person to be in that seat.”  Wallace is a former justice of the state Supreme Court.

Murphy did offer a take on the overall state of affairs in regard to redistricting. He said he’s happy New Jersey’s population is growing and that unlike some other northeast and midwest states, New Jersey didn’t lose a congressional seat.

Census data shows that the state’s population grew by about 500,000 to 9.2 million over the last 10 years.

“That to me is the big news,” he said.

Murphy probably is happy about that, but he also was taking a little bit of a political swipe at Republicans, many of whom like to talk about people “fleeing” New Jersey because of its high taxes.

Speaking of leaving New Jersey, the governor also has been taking some heat from Republicans for vacationing in Costa Rica over the Christmas holiday.

This to him is a non-issue.

Murphy noted that it’s valuable for everyone to spend time with their families, and what’s more, even when you’re away, you’re not really away as long as there are computers. zoom, conference calls and the like.

Or in other words, it’s 2022, not 1922.