Senator Jennifer Beck and Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini Endorse Cullari in CD-6 Primary
In an interview with Politickernj, the Monmouth County GOP nominee in the primary for the 6th Congressional District, Ernesto Cullari, said that Anna Little, the 2010 GOP nominee in the 6th district and his primary opponent this year, was focused on herself and not the task at hand, defeating Congressman Frank Pallone, during the 2010 general election,
“What I saw was a candidate unwilling to go after (incumbent U.S. Rep. Frank) Pallone – like the fact that he got his wife a job at the EPA where she works while most people suffer an economic downturn,” Cullari said. “Frank Pallone and a slew of other leaders have been looking out for just themselves. I’ll make that case. I’m not ashamed to make it.
“What I witnessed in Anna was someone deeply focused on herself instead of the task at hand – namely advancing the small government ideology,” he added. “She missed that opportunity.”
Cullari went on to define himself as the true Tea Party conservative in the primary,
The Bayshore Tea Party Group announced the following endorsements this afternoon:
GOP CD-6 primary: Anna Little
GOP CD-7 primary: David Larsen
GOP U.S. Senate primary: Bader Qarmout
The announcement stated simply, “We are proud to announce our support of the above candidates and look forward to working with them in their efforts to represent us.”
Little, the former mayor of Highlands, a former Monmouth County Freeholder and the 2010 GOP nominee in CD-6, is facing off with Asbury Park businessman and triCityNews columnist Ernesto Cullari for the nomination to take on Congressman Frank Pallone in the sixth district which is comprised of coastal northern Monmouth County and much of Middlesex County. Little received the Republican part endorsement from the Middlesex GOP. Cullari received the Monmouth GOP endorsement.
Larsen is taking a second primary run at incumbent GOP Congressman Leonard Lance in the 7th district which includes all of Hunterdon County, parts of Morris, Somerset, Warren and Union Counties and Millburn Township in Essex County. Lance received the endorsement of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on May 2.
Qarmout is running against State Senator Joe Kyrillos for the nomination to unseat U.S. Senator Bob Menendez.
www.moremonmouthmusings.net/
[Monmouth Tea Party Coalition Endorses Anna Little in CD-6
By Frank Cotton
Last election Anna Little proved to be someone that would represent the people and
not party politics. She has endured hostile treatment by former supporters that appear
to be “party centered” and not concerned with the decay and downward direction of
our country.]
By Kelly Ann Hart, Chief Executive Officer, Cullari for Congress
It’s unfortunate that Anna Little and her current supporters do not see what’s actually going on. More importantly, it’s unfortunate I need to respond to these accusations but the urgency of facts is necessary.
Anna Little declared her candidacy for Congress in November 2010 during her concession speech. Along with her speech she informed the public of her foundation and PAC’s for her re-election campaign. Then in early 2012 Anna declared her run for U.S. Senate, to run against Robert Menendez… her failure to acquire the 1000 signatures (throughout the state) on her petitions led her to announce her run, once again, for Congress in District 6. Her announcement came days after Ernesto Cullari declared his candidacy.
This inconsistent behavior from Anna Little is what drove her professional team away from her. There is no personal vendetta against her; although, Anna will claim different as she has done numerous times in the past. I take strong offense to anyone making false claims against me or our team that we would for one second not be concerned with the direction of our country. Frank Cotton, who ran himself on a few occasions as an independent and also claims to be conservative, should at the very least call those people he is making ridiculous claims against and convey the facts.
Which poll is closer to reality? Quinnipiac or Monmouth?
How two respected independent pollsters could have such differing results for Governor Chris Christie’s approval ratings has been the subject of quite a bit of chatter this week since Monmouth University released their poll indicating that Christie’s ratings were 11 points lower than reported by the Qunnipiac poll released last week. Quinnipiac reported Chrisite’s approval rating at 59%-36% while Monmouth said that 50% of registered voters approve of the job that Christie’s doing compared to 38% who do not.
There’s been enough buzz about the difference that Patrick Murray, Polling Director at Monmouth, posted a piece on his blog (cross posted on Politickernj), that took a swipe at Quinnipiac for framing their approval question in such a way that Christie’s numbers would be higher. Murray said that because Quinnipiac first asked if Christie would be a good selection as a Vice Presidential nominee, respondents were more likely to give him higher marks when asked to evaluate his job performance.
Quinnipiac, on the other hand plays around with the order in which they ask the governor’s job rating question.In 8 polls over the past year, they asked Gov. Christie’s job rating as the first question in 3 cases and the 3rd question in one case.For the remaining four polls, the governor’s rating question was slotted from #10 and #13 in their questionnaire.
When it was the first question, the governor’s positive job rating was only 44% to 47%.At the number 3 slot, it was 53%.At #10 or later in the interview, it ranged from 55% to 59%. It’s worth noting that the lower poll numbers came early last year, and were either closer to or even lower than other polls conducted at that time. Hmmm.
In the most recent Quinnipiac poll, one of the questions preceding Gov. Christie’s rating presented him as a potential nominee for Vice President.In other words, the survey framed the governor as a national figure before asking voters to rate his job performance.Could this be why his rating among Republican voters in particular shot up to an astronomical 92%?
Pollsters know that job approval ratings can be impacted by the context of a poll interview.That’s why most pollsters try to place these key trend questions in the same place in every questionnaire.This increases our confidence that any changes in a politician’s ratings are due to real shifts in opinion and not an artifact of questionnaire inconsistencies.
I’m willing to venture that first naming Chris Christie as Mitt Romney’s potential running mate before asking New Jerseyans to rate their governor might have had a wee bit to do with the two polls’ divergent trends.
Mickey Carroll, Director of the Quinnipac Polling Institute, is not interested in getting into a pissing match with Murray. “Patrick Murray is a very good pollster,” Carroll said three times in a seven minute phone interview with MMM. “Every poll is different, something could have happened in the week in between the two polls,” Carroll said, “we asked the question the same way.”
When told that Murray said that Quinnipiac framed the approval question by first asking a question about Christie being a potential VP, Carroll said, “that could make a difference, but I think we asked the approval question first. Didn’t we? Patrick Murray is a good pollster, a savvy analyst and a smart guy.”
Republican strategists, who would only speak on background, were quick to criticise Murray and side with Quinnipiac.
“The Quinnipiac poll from last week showing the Governor’s job approval at 59% is closer to reality,” said one strategist who cited internal GOP numbers, “The problem with the Monmouth University poll is that it samples, ADULTS, rather than registered voters, or better still, likely voters.It is cheaper and easier to poll adults, because thereare a lot more of them and they are easier to qualify.It is harder, and more expensive, to find and poll a likely voter – especially a likely voter who votes in non-Presidential year elections.”
When told that Murray blamed the difference on how Quinnipiac framed the question, the same strategist said, “Patrick is out of his mind.”
In fairness to Murray, MMM verified that Quinnipiac and Monmouth both sample adults who then self identify as registered voters. However, on their website Quinnipiac says that they ask screening questions, plural, to determine who is a registered voter. Murray said Monmouth only asks one question to determine if a respondent is registered to vote or not. He said that 80% of his respondents tend to be voters. 78% of New Jersey adults are registered to vote.
In his blog post, Murray acknowledged that his Monmouth poll results are consistently more favorable to Democrats while Quinnipiac’s are consistently more favorable to Republicans. MMM asked Murray how that could happen consistently if both polls were using random computer generated phone numbers. “Is it how you weight the sample?” we asked. “That’s part of it,” Murray said, “the rest is that we (Monmouth) call a greater percentage of cell phones. Cell phone users tend to be younger and more Democratic.”
With that answer, that weighting his samples more heavily towards Democrats and cell phone users, Murray seemed to be confirming the Republican complaints.
“That’s fine, I’m the only one who consistently asks the trend question in the same place,” was Murray’s retort, “that’s polling 101.”
Another Republican strategist was more upset about how Murray wrote up his poll release that he was with the numbers. “Political sands are shifting?” asked the Republican.“It’s a margin of error shift!Murray sounds like he is writing press releases for the Democratic State Committee, not acting as an independent pollster from an esteemed New Jersey university.”
A third Republican scoffed at the notion of even taking Murray’s numbers seriously, pointing out how badly Monmouth Gannett polled the 2009 gubernatorial race between Chrisite, former Governor Jon Corzine and Chris Daggett. “Murray’s last poll in that election had Corzine winning by 2 points and Daggett getting 8% of the vote. Christie won by 5 points a few days later.”
MMM set out to find a Democratic strategist to weigh in on the difference between the two polls, but no one would talk to us. “Try Patrick Murray,” was the best answer we got.
UPDATE
Murray called shortly after this piece was posted to ask that if his 2009 gubernatorial results were going to be used against him, that his correct calling of the 2010 CD-6 congressional race also be mentioned.
During the 2010 congressional race, MMM analysed a Monmouth Poll that indicated Congressman Frank Pallone was leading Anna Little by 11%. MMM concluded, using Monmouth’s data, that Pallone’s lead should be 9%. Murray agreed, “your turnout assumptions are as good as mine,” he said. Things got funky when the Little campaign issued a press release announcing that Murray had revised his numbers based upon MMM’s analysis and that Pallone’s lead was then in single digits. Murray issued a release stating that his “official” numbers hadn’t changed. He issued a later poll that indicated Pallone’s lead was down to 7% and in the final days of the campaign said a Little victory “could well happen.”
When Pallone eventually won by 11%, Murray said he was right all along.
It was all great fun for MMM, except that Murray stopped taking our calls for a while.
In his call this afternoon, Murray reiterated that the primary difference between the recent Quinnipiac poll and his poll about Christie’s approval ratings, is that Quinnipiac changed their methodology by altering the order of the questions.
Regarding polling adults vs polling registered voters, Murray said he was not in the business of electing or reelecting any candidate. He said his job is to report on what New Jersey residents are thinking.
Murray also said that his “poltical sands are shifting” comment in the poll release was a reference to New Jersey Democrats who being more aggressive in how than they go after Christie than they have been in the past. It was not a reference to the public’s approval of Christie, he said.
Asbury Park , NJ – 04/17/12 – Ernesto Cullari, candidate for Congress in the 6th District, has received the endorsement of Monmouth County Freeholder Lillian Burry. Lillian believes that Ernesto is the best choice to defeat Frank Pallone this November.
“Ernesto Cullari, albeit new to the political arena, has a sensitivity for what people want from their government. He has a congenial demeanor. Ernesto’s medical background makes him eminently qualified to tackle Obama-Care.” Said Monmouth County Freeholder Lillian Burry
Freeholder Burry, a prolific figure of Monmouth County, has been fighting for the taxpayer on the Freeholder Board since 2005. She was the first woman Director of the Board. Prior to her election as a Freeholder, Ms. Burry was a Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Committeewoman in Colts Neck. She is also a business owner and broker in her realty firm, Colts Neck Realty.
Cullari and Burry both believe in limited government and personal responsibility. Freeholder Burry spearheaded the 0% tax increase effort in the County Budget in 2008, and has held the line on taxes and spending throughout her tenure. Ernesto Cullari applauds Freeholder Burry for her service to the people of Monmouth County and appreciates her endorsement.
“I am honored to receive the endorsement of Freeholder Burry. She has been a fighter for the people’s interests in Monmouth County while keeping Monmouth County an affordable place to live. Her strong support of our County Park system has made Monmouth County a beautiful place to reside. Freeholder Burry’s endorsement further adds to the list of economic conservatives who have endorsed my candidacy. The coalition we are building to defeat Frank Pallone in November is growing larger by the day.” -Ernesto Cullari
U. S. Senators Frank Lautenberg and Bob Menendez, along with Congressman Frank Pallone held a press conference at Sandy Hook yesterday to let the public know about their efforts to keep the James J. Howard Marine Laboratory from being shuttered due to budget constraints at NOAA.
Let’s hope they are more successful than they were with Fort Monmouth.
The Republican Party will have primaries in both congressional districts that include Monmouth County on June 5.
Anna Little, the 2010 nominee in the 6th congressional district, will have the party line in Middlesex County. Little filed petitions with the Secretary of State with 594 signatures. Ernesto Cullari has the party line in Monmouth County. He filed petitions with 319 signatures. The winner of their primary will face Congressman Frank Pallone in the general election.
In the 4th congressional district, Congressman Chris Smith is being challenged by Terrence McGowan. Smith filed with 1,064 signatures to McGowan’s 311. 200 signatures are required.
Brian Froelich of Spring Lake is the only Democrat who filed in the 4th district.
In the 7th district, Congressman Leonard Lance is being challenged by David Larsen in a head to head rematch of the 2010 primary that included two additional challengers. Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula is the Democratic nominee. He filed with 430 signatures.
The statewide list of congressional primary candidates can be found here.
Falling short of the required 200 signatures to be a candidate for Congress, former Highlands Mayor Anna Little announced this morning that she is quitting politics and launching a career as a singer.
In an email blast to supporters the former freeholder and 2010 GOP nominee for Congress from New Jersey’s 6th district said,
“I have come to the conclusion that I can do more to serve we the people, born and unborn, with my God given musical talent than I can in the rough and tumble world of politics. We have made a difference together, you and I, over the last two years that has given rise to certain opportunities that you made possible.
Governor Chris Christie has offered me the opportunity to sing the National Anthem at Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium. Texas Governor Rick Perry said he would have me sing the Anthem at the Cowboys-Giants game in Arlington this November. Christie and Perry have promised to put a good word in for me with the 2013 Inaugural Committee to sing at President Romney’s swearing in ceremony or at the very least at one of the balls.
Ernesto Cullari has introduced me to his contacts at Disney. Their talent scout thinks I can be the next Angela Lansbury, who according to Disney’s site is everyone’s cup of tea. I could be next in line to play Mrs. Potts in the sequel and reprises of Beauty and the Beast on film and on Broadway.
In the meantime, I will be replacing the Kate Smith recording of God Bless America during the daily sunset ceremony at the Sea Gulls Nest at Sandy Hook. Proprietor Ed Segall is a big Pallone supporter. Given the opportunity to serve we the people, born and unborn, with my musical talent, it is just not right to put my new employer in such an uncomfortable position. I can see Sandy Hook from my house.”
Little, who lost the Monmouth GOP endorsement for Congress in the 6th district to Cullari, had counted on the Middlesex GOP to deliver the 200 required signatures during the convention that nominated her last Saturday, March 24. However, at the end of the day, there was only 75 signatures. Little collected another 135 signatures last week. Upon learning that Cullari had filed 500 signatures with the NJ Secretary of State on Friday, including those of 120 Middlesex County GOP convention delegates, Little realized that her petition would probably not survive a challenge given the duplicate signatures.
Little’s email continued:
This is not the end of Anna’s Army, but a new beginning. With my voice, we the people, born and unborn, can transform the culture of our country that you have been working so hard to save.
My backup chorus will be known as Anna’s Army. You can participate by volunteering to sing in the chorus, buying our CD’s and downloading songs from our soon to be launched website, or by making Little contributions.
All the Little contributions you make will go to the same work they have always gone to, just in a different form.
East Brunswick, NJ – On March 16, the Monmouth County GOP selected Ernesto Cullari as their choice to defeat Frank Pallone. Saturday, March 24, the Middlesex GOP voted Anna Little to take their line, making it clear they had no intentions of keeping the party in district 6 united during the most trying election cycle of our time.
As of two weeks ago, Little was fiercely running for US Senate against Joe Kyrillos. She campaigned by asking for donations and signatures from supporters. Knowing her obvious failure, Little then decided to run against newcomer Ernesto Cullari. Her decision came just days after Cullari’s announcement.
In 2010, Little was defeated by over 10% by incumbent Democrat, Frank Pallone.
“It’s a shame we are dealing with a split line in District 6. With the ballot having Obama on top this year, it would have been better for the Middlesex GOP to unite through the primary. On Tuesday, June 5th the voters in both counties will decide which Republican they want to represent them against Frank Pallone. After Anna Little’s approximate 10% loss in 2010, and failed U.S. Senate run, I think the choice will be clear to them. Ernesto Cullari is focused on one thing; beating Frank Pallone in November and returning the position to the constituency of district 6”, said, Charles Measley, Campaign Manager.
“My team and I are undeterred that the Middlesex County GOP did not vote in our favor, but this in no way means we will back down. Monmouth County GOP has put their trust in me to defeat Frank Pallone in November and that is what I intend to do.” Congressional Candidate, Ernesto Cullari.
Ernesto Cullari is a businessman, medical professional, and columnist for local newspapers. Ernesto is prepared to take the fight to Jersey’s most corrupt politician and the author of “Obama-Care”, Frank Pallone.
Asbury Park , NJ – 04/17/12 –