There’s going to be plenty of recriminations on the GOP side of the aisle today, Save Jerseyans. In truth, there were plenty of factors at play yesterday that resulted in a net zero gain at the legislative level.
Here’s a big one. You’ll remember that Rosenthal, a professor at Rutgers, was the tiebreaker appointed to adjudicate between the GOP and DEMs during the redistricting process earlier this year.
He reportedly favored a legislative map specifically designed for stability, i.e, one that favored incumbents. A “stable” map ultimately prevailed after the parties’ reps deadlocked, and that’s the primary reason why we saw even less turnover last night than pundits expected (except for Patrick Murray, hat tip) despite the Governor’s well-over 50% approval rating.
Is a lack of competitiveness really good for democracy? I don’t see how anyone could argue affirmatively. It’s impossible to ensure effective governance when the politicians are unaccountable to electoral forces. But Professor Rosenthal thought so. And he got what he wanted last night (I guess?). That’s why he’s the official winner of Election 2011 in my book. Although that’s little comfort for those of us who would’ve liked to see a more fiscally responsible legislature in January 2012… or sometime before at least January 2022.
What do you think those extra factors were Matt? Did the smear tactics you guys were using explode in your face? (ie. countless attacks against Van Drew) Was it a rejection of the policies of Christie, even though he's up in the polls and those same people that helped you lose a seat voted for him 2 years ago? Was it bad candidates? What was it?
It was everything. Perception is everything in politics. In Bergen County
it was late breaking stories about the same old corruption and the expose about the Bergen County Executive's campaign manager getting a $ 300k contract and boasting that he does not need the money and that he does not communicate with Republicans. The current County Clerk Lisa Randall's time sheet shenanigans. Its about bad candidates in D 38 hand picked by Christie who were clueless on the issues and were tainted by corruption. The establishments reliance on lawyers to run is ruining the party as they have little or no connection with the working men and women. Add in the usual voter fraud and low turn out and you have the answer
God Bless NJ's Dem's who support Christie. Cause no, the BIG policies were supported by many NJ Dem's. Thanks to them, NJ public unions can go suck an egg.