Long Morning Lines in GOP Areas

By Matt Rooney, SaveJersey.com

Don’t get too excited, Save Jerseyans.

It’s very, very early. The polls are open until 8:00 p.m. tonight. Did I mention it’s early?

That being said, I’ve heard anecdotal but consistent turnout reports this morning that bode well for a strong Lonegan performance in today’s #njsen special election.

Example? More than one person has told me about voting lines wrapping out-the-door in Oakland, New Jersey. The Bergen County community of just under 13,000 is home to approximately 1,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats and voted 55.8% for John McCain in 2008.

PolitickerNJ is reporting robust Booker turnout in Essex County but MoreMonmouthMusings cites a source who says it’s unusually quiet in Newark’s East Ward…

We’ve received similar reports from some other Republican-leaning towns around the state such as the affluent bedroom community of Moorestown in Burlington County.

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Conflicting voter turnout reports out of Newark

PolitickerNJ is reporting that voters are coming out strong for Cory Booker in Newark’s North Ward, South Orange and Montclair.

However, a Newark resident who asked not to be named told MMM this morning that he was only the 9th voter in Newark’s East Ward at about 11:30 AM.

“The Cory Booker campaign is lackluster,” the Newark resident said, “no sound trucks, no signs, no door knockers, nothing. It’s weird.”

While all Independent polls tracking the Special Senate election have qualified their reports with the caveat that turnout for an election on the third Wednesday in October is unpredictable, most pollsters tracking have weighted their results with the assumption that urban turnout for Booker would be consistent with the vote that turned out for President Obama last November.

If the early turnout in Newark’s East Ward is indicative of urban turnout throughout the state, Steve Lonegan could be a U.S. Senator tomorrow.

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Lonegan, in Middletown, Tangles With Pix11 Anchor

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Pallone: End the shutdown so my wife can go back to work

Congressman Frank Pallone held a press conference at the EPA’s Edison Lab on Monday, ostensibly  to highlight how the “Republican” government shutdown is negatively impacted the middle class and is putting the environment at risk.

“It is now day 14 of the reckless Republican government shutdown that was orchestrated by extreme factions of the GOP to drive their agenda and drive us all into a national crisis. Shutting down the government hurts our economy and threatens middle-class jobs as shown right here at the Edison EPA Lab, where 100 furloughed workers have been forced to stop their work on New Jersey’s Superfund sites, among other critical environmental programs”

“I’m outraged that the GOP shutdown is putting the health and safety of New Jerseyans at risk. This is no way to run the government”

Pallone neglected to mention that his wife is the Deputy Associate Administrator of the EPA.

If Steve Lonegan manages to pull off an upset today and defeat Cory Booker in the Special U.S. Senate election to replace the late Frank Lautenberg, Pallone is a very likely candidate to challenge Lonegan for a full senate term next year.

For those moderate Republicans planning to write in someone besides Lonegan or to sit out the election, vote for Lonegan if only to open up the NJ CD 6 Congressional seat next year.

A vote for Lonegan sends Booker to Hollywood, after he finishes his term as Newark’s mayor, and makes Pallone a lobbyist.

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Let me be clear, vote on Wednesday, vote on Wednesday, vote on Wednesday

Republicans and moderate-right Independents planning to sit out tomorrow’s election should view this video twice.

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What can we learn from Booker-Lonegan primaries?

What can we learn from Booker-Lonegan primaries? (via NJ.com)

By Frederick Kaimann/The Star-Ledger With the general election for the open U.S. Senate seat tomorrow, what clues do Cory Booker and Steve Lonegan’s primary wins reveal for the Wednesday’s outcome? Both won their primaries handily. Lonegan, the former…

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Daily Caller Tries To Tilt A Second NJ Senate Election

The conservative website that broke the “news” of Senator Bob Menendez cavorting with underage Dominican prostitutes on the eve of last year’s election between the Democratic U.S Senator and State Senator Joe Kyrillos published a story this morning alleging that Cory Booker does not live in Newark.

Accompanied by a video by Highway 61 Entertainment, a firm that also produced a documentary that makes the case that President Obama’s real father was socialist Franklin Marshal Davis, not Barack Obama, Sr., today’s story alleges that Booker lives in New York and that his Newark properties house the mayor’s security detail from the Newark PD.

Last year’s story about Menendez was widely debunked as poorly sourced, relying on anonymous videos of the Dominican escorts who later recanted.  The story did not get any legs until after the election which was held seven days after Superstorm Sandy hit New Jersey.

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Monmouth Poll: Booker’s Lead Shrinks To 10%

It’s two days before New Jersey elects a U.S. Senator to replace the late Frank Lautenberg in Washington and Newark Mayor Cory Booker’s lead over former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan has shrunk to 10%, according to a poll released by Monmouth University this morning.  Democrat Booker led Republican Lonegan by 13% two weeks ago and by 26% in August.

Polling Director Patrick Murray surveyed 1,393 likely voters who have voted in at least two of the last four general elections between Thursday and Saturday of last week.   The poll has a margin of error of +/- 2.6%.

The poll results are weighted with the assumptions that Democrats will be 38% of the turnout, Independents 34% and Republicans 28%. Monmouth expects that women will be 52% of the turnout.  The expected racial demographic of voters is 75% White, 12% Black, 8% Hispanic and 5% Asian/Other.

Democrats favor Booker by a margin of 90%-6%.  Independents favor Lonegan, 48%-43% with 6% undecided.  Republicans favor Lonegan 86%-11%.

55% of respondents said that Booker’s views on issues are generally in line with most of New Jerseyans.  30% said Booker is out of step with most voters and 15% are not sure. 48% said Booker is more interested in being on the national stage than he is in serving the people of New Jersey.  This perception accounts for Booker’s weakened support, according to Murray.

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Where Cory Booker and Steve Lonegan stand on the issues

Where Cory Booker and Steve Lonegan stand on the issues (via NJ.com)

Democrat Cory Booker and Republican Steve Lonegan are about as far apart ideologically as you can get. Here’s where they stand on the major issues, drawn from their own words. The economy Booker: Supports raising the minimum wage to $10.10 and investing…

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Steve Lonegan and Sarah Palin rev up conservatives at speedway rally

Steve Lonegan and Sarah Palin rev up conservatives at speedway rally (via NJ.com)

By Susan K. Livio and Seth Augenstein Sarah Palin rode the Tea Party Express tour bus into Ocean County today to lend her political star power to Republican Steve Lonegan’s U.S. Senate campaign, urging the roughly 2,000 supporters to muster up “their…

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