Talk Elections

Virginia and New Jersey both elect their governors in just a little over 18 months in November 2009.  Is their any news coming from either state on that front?  Are their any candidates being thrown around right now?

Here's all you need to know about NJ - The Dems win.

I know that -- but who will it be?

There are a number of people on both sides. They don't even know if Corzine will seek re-election. Give it a few more months.

Well, Corzine's certainly not acting like someone who's seeking to retire.  So D hold there.

As for VA, the race is basically set: one of State Sen. Creigh Deeds (D) and State Del. Brian Moran (D) will face state Atty Gen Bob McDonnell (R).  McDonnell just barely beat Deeds for his current job in 2005, so the 2009 gubernatorial race could be a rematch.  It should be competitive.

Actually...if anything...he is...

Oh God I hope so. Fake Democrat.

Why...do you...say that?

Eternal optimism aside, if Chris Christie runs (which it looks like he might) the Repubs certainly have a shot

The general line on New Jersey is that Corzine is likely to run again.  He's got enough money and clout such that he should be able to avoid a primary fight, even if he stays as unpopular as he is now (or gets even more unpopular).

The likely Republican candidate looks to be Chris Christie, who has been making some not so subtle gestures regarding the race.  Christie actually has a decent shot at things—he's a highly accomplished and well regarded prosecutor—but there have been some recent mini-scandals that have tarnished his squeaky clean image.

Corzine is favored to win, of course, but it probably won't be a huge landslide.

Actually, Mr. Moderate, the biggest thing Christie has working against him is that he is known for fighting corruption not creating it :P

I was being told that his campaigning for the very unpopular toll hike was a sign that he didn't care about another term.

Jon Corzine has been campaigning for unpopular stuff since his 2000 U.S. Senate campaign.  It's just the way he does business.

Heh.  Yeah, that's basically what I was thinking.

More specifically, though, Corzine has just embarked on a long-term greenhouse gas initiative, which would seem to me to indicate that he's not planning on packing it in quite yet.

What has harmed Christie as of recently?

NJ Dem congressmen have muddied him up. He awarded John Ashcroft multi-million dollar no bid contracts which then led to his subpeona along with the AG. This forced the justice dept to stop this practice, which further enforced a sense of wrong doing.

Couldn't happen to a nicer guy. I guess we won't be having leaks about upcoming indictments of Frank Lautenberg/Robert Andrews appearing in the Star-Ledger on October 20...

Well Frank Lautenberg has never been acused of unethical behavior, so an indictment would be a far stretch for him.

Menendez is corrupt, Lautenberg is simply incompetent

Plus, Christie is too busy waiting to indict the people involved in the EnCap fiasco

That's true.  Lautenberg isn't corrupt, which is about the one good thing I can see it fit to say about him.