Former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez is no longer eligible to seek or hold any public office in the Garden State following his convictions on federal bribery charges and other offenses, officials said Friday.

Menendez, 71, was convicted in July 2024 on 16 counts of bribery, extortion, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. A federal jury found him guilty of accepting cash and gold bars in exchange for favors from his Senate office, including acting in secret to benefit the government of Egypt.

Menendez is now serving an 11-year prison sentence. His wife, Nadine Menendez, was also convicted and sentenced to 54 months in prison. Prosecutors argued she also accepted cash and gold bars, along with a Mercedes-Benz and a low-to-no-show job.

New Jersey Superior Court Judge Robert Lougy issued a court order barring Menendez from future public office on Friday, Attorney General Matt Platkin and the state Office of Public Integrity and Accountability announced in a news release.

Under the order, if Menendez applies for or campaigns for public office or public employment, he could be charged with a fourth-degree contempt of court charge.

"Critical to preserving the public's faith and trust in government institutions is ensuring that elected officials who commit crimes involving their offices don't find new opportunities to regain positions of power," Platkin said in a news release. "Too many people in New Jersey have a cynical viewpoint that corruption is a routine, widespread feature of our politics. We hope the court's decision sends a message that it is not acceptable and it will carry consequences."

Menendez resigned his Senate seat last August after 18 years in the chamber. The seat was filled by South Jersey's Andy Kim, who defeated Curtis Bashaw in the November 2024 election.

Menendez, the son of Cuban immigrants, got his start in politics in Union City, New Jersey, serving on the city Board of Education in the 1970s. By the end of his political career, he was chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.