Daggett files for matching funds

by: Rosi Efthim

Tue Jul 07, 2009 at 03:22:45 PM EDT

If approved, this brings Daggett taxpayer matching funds equivalent to $2 in public money for every $1 he can raise, to a total of $10.9 million. Daggett says he expects to raise that maximum.

Chris Christie is also participating in the matching funds program. Corzine, a multi-millionaire who can draw on his own funds, has no spending limits.

And waiting in the wings for Corzine is the Democratic Governor's Association (DGA), which announces today it raised $11.6 million in the first half of 2009, with just two races this year - New Jersey and Virginia - in the schedule. The Republican Governors Association (RGA) reports raising even more at $12.2 million, with a record $20.4 million cash on hand.

Daggett, the former state Environmental Protection Commissioner running as an independent, with no equivalent national infrastructure behind him, will have no similar resources to draw on.

But this makes the race a little more complicated. I think the greater impact -  and pressure - is on Corzine, as both the incumbent called on to defend his record during harsh economic times, and as the candidate consistently trailing in the polls.  

New Jersey's a blue state, arguably it's very reliably blue. But there is also a strong streak of non-affiliation and independence here. Daggett comes with a record of service, and now he's going to get some more press. No, he has zero chance of winning. I'm sure he doesn't see his campaign that way, and he's due respect for that rare independent campaign that demonstrates measurable viability. But who does he siphon votes from?

I think he takes from both. Plenty of people dissatisfied with Corzine but completely unwilling to follow an ethics-challenged Republican may now have a more attractive alternative. But I think Corzine has more to worry about here, though I continue to maintain that there is nothing wrong in the Corzine campaign that cannot be overcome, if he engages the progressive and activist core that drove Barack Obama's votes. I'm looking for that. Corzine's the slam-dunk best choice.