CD-6 Primary: It will all come down to turnout

On the day Anna Little won the endorsement of the Middlesex County GOP, she became the favorite to win the 6th congressional district nomination.  Despite that all of the candidates, Democrat and Republican are from Monmouth County, the new 6th is a Middlesex County district. 

With no presidential contest on the top of the ballot and the U.S. Senate race uncompetitive, turnout is likely to be very low.  13,000 voters decided the 2010 primary race between Little and Monmouth County GOP Vice Chair Diane Gooch by less than 90 votes.  This time out, I’ll be surprised if there are more than 6000 votes.

Based on name recognition, Little should be considered the favorite.  She scored an upset in the last primary. She was the general election candidate in 2010 and she was a countywide candidate for Freeholder in 2006.

Coming into the race, Ernesto Cullari, the Monmouth County GOP endorsed candidate was a complete unknown, except for readers of the triCityNews where he was the token conservative columnist.   The nomination in both Middlesex and Monmouth Counties was his for the taking because no one else wanted it.  Little was running for the U.S. Senate nomination against Joe Kyrillos.

Little has been once again running against the Republican establishment who turned her away for the congressional nomination twice and never wanted her as freeholder candidate.  She won the office of Freeholder by one vote at a raucous January 2006 convention and was denied the nomination for reelection in 2007.

But it was during a meeting with Kyrillos in early March, before the Monmouth County screening/candidate selection and after Cullari announced his candidacy, that Little give up her Senate bid and decided to make another run for Congress.   Kyrillos did not want a primary challenge from the pesky Little.  Little did not want her career to end with a primary loss to Kyrillos.   The independent minded elected officials and municipal chairs of the Monmouth GOP were not going along with the deal.  They knew Little was no more of a threat to Kyrillos than Badar Qarmout.

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Curley: “None of the above!”

Freeholder Director John Curley told MMM that he does not support either former Senate President John Bennett or State Committeewoman Christine Hanlon becoming the next chair of the Monmouth County Republican Committee.

“If I had a vote I wouldn’t vote for either one of them,” said Curley, “The chair should not be someone who is hussling for government contracts.”

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Clifton will endorse Hanlon for Monmouth County GOP Chair

Assemblyman Rob Clifton will join Senators Joe Kyrillos and Jennifer Beck, and his Assembly colleagues Mary Pat Angelini, Amy Handlin, and Dave Rible in endorsing GOP State Committeewoman Christine Hanlon as the next Monmouth County GOP Chair.

A formal announcement is expected later today or tomorrow.

Clifton’s endorsement will give Hanlon the formal support of 6 of the 9 member of the Monmouth County Legislative Delegation.  Assembly members Sean Kean, Declan O’Scanlon and Caroline Casagrande have yet to express a preference for either Hanlon or her opponent, former Senate President John Bennett.

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Monmouth Legislators Endorse Christine Hanlon for GOP Chair

The majority of Monmouth County’s legislative delagation has signed a letter endorsing State Committeewoman and Ocean Township Municipal Chair Christine Hanlon in her quest to become the next Chair of the Monmouth County Republcian Committee. 

Senators Joe Kyrillos and Jennifer Beck were joined by Assembly Members Amy Handlin, Mary Pat Angelini and Dave Rible in signing the letter that was mailed to county committee members and candidates.

We are writing to you today to endorse State Committeewoman and Ocean Municipal Chairwoman Christine Hanlon as the next Chair of the Monmouth County Republican Party and ask you to vote for her on June 12^th.

Christine has been an integral part of our recent Republican successes at every level.  She has served as the Monmouth Coordinator for both the McCain-Palin presidential campaign and the Christie- Guadagno gubernatorial campaign. She has run the last three Monmouth County Republican Victory Galas, and many other fundraising events, raising in excess of $500,000 for the party.  For the past three years, she has assisted the Chairman in the coordination of our county campaigns, and worked with him to develop campaign plans, including strategy and voter targeting, direct mail and our county wide vote by mail program.

Just as importantly, Christine has worked to develop and sustained grassroots network, increased volunteer participation and increased communication from the organization to people like you, the lifeblood of our party. As Chair, she will continue her efforts to keep you informed and involved and continue to raise the money needed to win aggressive campaigns.

With the recent nomination of Monmouth County Republican Chair Joe Oxley to become the Superior Court bench, we must find a new Chair who will continue his recent successes in leading our party. Christine Hanlon has played an integral part in those successes and we are writing today to ask you to vote for Christine  to succeed Chairman Oxley as Monmouth County Republican Chair.

We strongly endorse Christine Hanlon for Chairwoman, and ask that you vote for her at the upcoming Monmouth County Republican Convention.

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Three traits of a great chair: The Danskin Model

By Wayne Pomanowski

Monmouth County has had three chairmen in the past eight years. There is nothing better for the Republican Party than a steady sure strong but compassionate hand to guide this fine organization. My favorite chairman was of course Ben Danskin. This is not to demean from any of the other chairmen in our party but simply to highlight what made Ben such a solid leader. Ben had three strong traits.

1.  Ben could party build. Ben was out probably five nights a week. He attended local GOP meetings in every town. Ben was a smiling face who could pull you into the mix. For me he was someone who was a leader I could believe in. He was there when I needed a pat on the back and also there when I needed a kick in the pants.

2. Ben could raise money. Ben had his famous power hitter’s breakfast every year and was known to raise tens of thousands at those meetings. And you could always count on Ben to be at every county and local fundraiser.

3. Ben was a peacemaker. Maybe you didn’t make a piece until Ben had taken you to the woodshed, but after that discussion you knew you were welcome back into the fold. But Ben would never hold a grudge. He told you straight out how he felt and when the discussion was over he expected you back in line with the team.

As we here in Monmouth County go through the selection process so often county committee people are pulled into this race with suggestions and directions from party leaders as to who they should vote for. The only question is, from the criteria I have outlined from the above, which candidate will best provide you with the three criteria for a great chair. For those of us who have chosen the political life your decision on June 12 will be critical for the strength and growth of this fine party for the next two years.

Editors note:  Ben Danskin was the Monmouth County Republican Chairman from 1969 until 1982.   Congressman Chris Smith read a tribute/biography of Danskin into the Congressional Record on July, 14, 2005. 

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Bennett Announces For Monmouth GOP Chair

John Bennett

Former Senate President John O. Bennett, III announced his candidacy for Monmouth County Republican Chairman this afternoon.   The following letter is being mailed to members of the Monmouth County Republican Committee:

I wanted to reach all of you as soon as possible after the Governor’s nomination of our County Chair, Joseph Oxley, to the Monmouth County Superior Court.  Joe has served our County and Party well and will be an excellent Judge.  As a result of his appointment, a new County Chair will need to be elected at our County Reorganization Meeting to be held on June 12, 2012, at the Colts Neck High School at 7:00 pm.  I would like you to support me to fill that vacancy.  I would consider the position of County Chair to be both an honor and a capstone to a very fulfilling political career. 

I have been in public service for over 30 years, and I believe my extensive experience and background will serve the County Committee well.  You will find a short resume enclosed that highlights my political life from Chairman of the Young Republicans of Monmouth County to my current position of Treasurer of the New Jersey Republican State Committee.

A few points that I wanted to share with you which I feel are important for our party.

            1)         I believe in the County Convention System for candidate selection.

            2)         Every effort should be made to fill as many county Committee slots as possible.

3)         A working set of bylaws will be established within 60 days of my becoming County Chair.

4)         I pledge to forego all County legal work during my term as chair.  My daughter, Meghan Bennett Clark, Esq., is currently the First Assistant County Counsel, and  has agreed to resign immediately upon my selection as Chair.

5)         Neither I, nor any member of my law firm, will take any paid appointments from the County during my term as Chair.  The perception of any conflicts must be removed, and no County chair should be employed by the County in any capacity.

6)         There needs to be improved communication between the County party and the local parties.  I will establish a working Board of Directors from throughout the County to report back to the Chair regarding issues and events and  regular meetings will  be held.

7)         Headquarters in Freehold should be open and available to all Monmouth County GOP groups.

8)         Our  website, www.monmouthrepublican.org, must be updated and kept current.

9)         Every effort should be made to value differences of opinion and have internal disputes resolved privately.

10)       Last, but certainly not least,  the County Party must refocus on raising money.  During my tenure as Senate President I raised more money than any other Republican in that time except for a sitting Governor.  The Chair needs to participate, while also abiding by all pay-to-play rules and negotiations.

I am asking for your support as County Chair in order to implement this platform and keep Monmouth County strong and Republican.  Together we can make a difference. 

                                    Very truly yours,

                                    John O. Bennett                                 

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HANLON ANNOUNCES ENDORSEMENTS BY MONMOUTH REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP

Christine Hanlon today released a list of municipal chairs and party leaders supporting her in the upcoming election for Monmouth County Republican Chair. The chairs who have pledged their support to Hanlon represent 394 county committee members, more than half of the 768 total committee membership.

 “I am grateful and humbled by the support I’ve gotten from so many people across Monmouth County since I announced my candidacy for Monmouth County Republican Chair,” said Hanlon. “The leadership of our party understands that we must keep moving forward and know that I am the choice to keep our party stable and to lead us into the future. People are happy at the direction the party has taken in the last four years and they want to keep moving forward. We’ve improved our fundraising efforts, expanded our grassroots network and volunteer support, improved communication with our base and most importantly, won elections. I’ve been involved in all of those efforts, and if I’m elected Chair, people know those efforts will continue.”

The list of Municipal Chairs and party leaders supporting Hanlon include:

MonmouthCounty Republican Committee Vice-Chair Diane Gooch

Aberdeen Chair- Sheilah Balavram

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Asbury Park Press Takes Note of Chairmans Races

The print edition of the Asbury Park Press has an six paragraph article today about the Republican and Democratic races for County Chair.

“Pair look to replace Oxley as county GOP chairman” is the headline of the piece which appears on page 3 of the local Monmouth section of the paper. The lead is  “Former Senate President John O. Bennett III and Christine Giordano Hanlon, a behind-the-scenes political organizer, both hope to succeed Joseph W. Oxley as chairman of the Monmouth County Republican Committee

The article explains that GOP Chairman Joe Oxley has been nominated to the state Superior Court and reports that he said he is stepping down to spend more time with his 10 week-old daughter, Margaux.

Bennett received one paragraph that said he would officially notify party officials of his candidacy today and noted his position with the Dilworth Paxon law firm. Bennett did not elaborate due to a recent death in his family, the APP said.

Hanlon received two paragraphs on her background.

The last paragraph mentioned the Democratic race between Marlboro Democratic Chairman Frank LaRocca and Long Branch publisher Vin Gopal.

It is unusual that the APP would cover an internal party race.  They did not even mention the January election for Freeholder until days after Serena DiMaso was already sworn in to replace Rob Clifton.

Given the extreme, to put it mildly, coverage that Bennett received from the APP in 2003 over his double billing of Marlboro Township while serving as the municipal attorney, many Republican leaders have been worried about the impact a Bennett chairmanship would have on the party and the coverage it receives from the press. 

The APP’s coverage of Bennett’s double billing his widely believed to the cause of his 2003 loss of his 12th district Senate seat, the losses of his running mates seats in the Assembly, and ultimately the exile to minority status of the Republican Party in Trenton which has continued to this day.

MMM will update this piece with a link the story on app.com, if and when it gets posted on the pay site.

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Strange Bedfellows

Unverified rumors fresh off the grapevine point to previously unthinkable alliances forming in the Monmouth GOP chair’s race.

The Howell GOP appears to be united behind John Bennett for Chairman.  John Costigan, Bob Walsh, Joe DiBella and Sue Veitengruber are all lining up behind the former Acting Governor, according to a Bennett supporter who added that Western Monmouth is “locked up” for Bennett.

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HANLON ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY FOR MONMOUTH COUNTY REPUBLICAN CHAIR

Republican State Committeewoman would be first female Republican Chair in Monmouth County History

OCEAN TWP.- Monmouth Republican State Committeewoman and Ocean Township Municipal Chair Christine Hanlon today formally announced her candidacy for Monmouth County Republican Chair. Hanlon, an attorney, has assisted Chairman Joe Oxley with the administration of the County Republican Party in recent years. She served as County Coordinator for the McCain-Palin campaign in 2008 and the Christie-Guadagno campaign in 2009. If elected, Hanlon will be the first female Republican Chair in Monmouth County history.

“Through my work on recent county-wide campaigns, I have become intimately familiar with and fully engaged in the inner workings and administration of our county Republican organization,” said Hanlon, who has the backing of most of the party leadership in the County.” I have worked hard to develop a strong grassroots volunteer network throughout the county, to increase communication from the organization, and to implement the use of technology and social media to advance voter outreach.”

“Monmouth Republicans will have a clear choice. We can move backward, or we can move forward. While we must honor our past, we must continue to move forward without the weight of past issues that can distract us from our mission,” concluded Hanlon.

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