Tomorrow Really Is Election Day

Seventh District (4.00 / 1)

The 7th district is also one of the few competitive ones in the state. Below is a letter I sent to all my friends who live in the district.

Friends,

You are receiving this message from me because

• You are in my e-mail address book, and
  
• You live in the 7th Legislative District

We have an important election coming up on Tuesday, November 8th. The entire legislature is up for a vote. While the recent legislative redistricting has made most of the districts non-competitive in favor of the incumbents (of both parties), ours is one of just a handful of districts that is competitive. And if you live in Moorestown or Mount Laurel, you are new to this district since the lines were re-drawn earlier this year.

We are electing one state senator and two members of the General Assembly. I have personally met with each of the candidates from both parties, and in my mind the choice is clear.

In the Assembly, Herb Conaway has been serving the district well for a decade. He has both a medical degree and a law degree and has served in the Air Force. He's very good at working with constituents and deserves another term. While his running mate, Troy Singleton, has not held elective office, Troy is familiar with the workings of Trenton.  Despite his youth (he's 37) Troy has already amassed a tremendous list of accomplishments. He was Chief of Staff to the popular former Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts. He's also president of the Carpenters Union and serves on the boards of Rowan University, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, and the Delaware River Bridge commission. He's in favor of marriage equality and will support public education. If Troy works only half as hard in the legislature as he has on the campaign, he'd still be one of the hardest working legislators in Trenton. Herb and Troy were endorsed by the Burlington County Times.

Running against Herb and Troy are two Republicans who would be rubber stamp votes for the Christie anti-middle class, anti-public school agenda. Jim Keenan is the mayor of Mount Laurel and has flip-flopped on the 2% property tax cap. Last summer, when I first met him, he was in favor of a referendum to exceed the cap, predicting dire consequences if the referendum failed. But once he became a candidate, he toed the Christie line and changed his position by 180 degrees. Chris Halgas is a small businessman who sees all solutions to a "tax cut at any price" lens, regardless of the consequences.

The race for state senate is one that needs to be examined carefully. The incumbent, Senator Diane Allen, is popular within the district. At one time, she was a moderate Republican - the type of GOPer that brought some sense to a party that has been drowning in Tea. But recently, she has taken a hard tack to the Right. While she used to be an advocate for women's health care, that is no longer the case. I sat in the Senate chamber earlier this year during the debate. Governor Christie vetoed a health care program that would cost each New Jersey citizen 85 cents, while bringing in nine times that amount in Federal dollars. Not only did Allen work to sustain the veto, she didn't even have the courage to defend her position on the Senate floor.

Allen's opponent, Dr. Gail Cook, is an educator and the Mayor of Beverly. Like Allen, Cook is a cancer survivor. She's the underdog in this campaign, but she deserves our vote. We need more educators in Trenton as the issues of charter schools, vouchers, and for-profit privatization of our education industry is debated next year.

I already voted by mail for the Cook/Conaway/Singleton team. I hope you do too. But whether you agree with me or not, please vote on Tuesday, November 8th.

Thanks for listening. You can follow my rants on Twitter or Facebook as "deciminyan"

Blog: http://www.deciminyan.org

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by: deciminyan @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 14:12:20 PM UTC

Vote for Vin Gopal in LD11 (4.00 / 3)

Amen - there was already every reason to vote for a passionate, smart, sincere, hardworking progressive like Vin Gopal for Assembly in LD11.

So, if we send him to the Legislature, and send a message that untruthful negative campaigning will not be tolerated, we win twice!

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by: Jeff Gardner @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 15:16:21 PM UTC

Liked your flier (4.00 / 1)

which reminds us:

THE TEA PARTY  
REPUBLICANS
ARE READY TO
COME OUT AND
VOTE NOVEMBER 8.
ARE YOU?

"The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die." - Sen. Ted Kennedy

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by: Bill Orr @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 15:25:05 PM UTC

Didn't mean to underestimate Dist. 7 (4.00 / 2)

Herb Conaway is a good friend and great health advocate colleague. Troy is a friend who I love and look forward to calling him "legislative colleague"!

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by: Senator Loretta Weinberg @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 15:36:38 PM UTC

GOTV volunteers (4.00 / 3)

Marie Corfield: Most Blue Jerseyans know that a few of us - including myself and Deciminyan - have been working with firecracker assembly candidate Marie Corfield, who was an ordinary teacher when she dared to confront Chris Christie and became first his first 'YouTube moment', then was sought-after by national news as one of the strongest voices challenging the Christie agenda. She's now running in the (redistricted, more Dem) LD-16. Want to pump strength behind her campaign? Call in: 908 231 9001.

Vin Gopal: Want to help Vin Gopal? Email the campaign.

Bob Gordon, Connie Wagner, Tim Eustace: website, 973-928-3545.

Jim Whelan: Campaign: 609-277-7242

And of course, for Sen. Weinberg, Valerie Huttle & Gordon Johnson: District37Democrats@gmail.com or 201-572-1030

It's not a particularly snappy signature, but here's what I think we need in the next NJ Democratic State Chair.  

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by: Rosi Efthim @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 18:05:58 PM UTC

Also Jeff (4.00 / 2)

Jeff Pickens, who also writes frequently for Blue Jersey, has done a lot for Marie's campaign. Not only is he the treasurer but he has done an outstanding job of feeding the volunteers.

Blog: http://www.deciminyan.org

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by: deciminyan @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 20:13:50 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Also Jeff (4.00 / 2)

Can I just also say that Jeff Pickens doesn't even live in LD-16, or even anywhere near it? Marie won't be his assemblywoman, and yet he's given dozens of high-level hours of time to her campaign, forward-thinking better Democratic representation for all of us. I don't know that every campaign has people with this kind of dedication. I do know the best ones do.  

It's not a particularly snappy signature, but here's what I think we need in the next NJ Democratic State Chair.  

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by: Rosi Efthim @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 21:06:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thanks for the props, folks (0.00 / 0)

It has been a privilege and honor for me to be a part of this campaign for this most excellent candidate, who will be a most excellent Assemblywoman and will represent not just LD-16 but all of us who want to keep New Jersey a great place to live.

If you can help out tomorrow, please listen to Rosi and call 908-231-9001.


Blog: Pick's Place

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by: jeffpickens @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 23:25:11 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Brendan Gill For Essex County Freeholder (4.00 / 2)

Here in Essex County's 5th District support for Democrate Brendan Gill is strong but that doesn't mean its a done deal. Go out to the polls and vote. And yes, ever with my 100+ fever I will be working for the campaign early in the morning! Go Brendan!

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by: johnleesandiego @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 19:19:55 PM UTC

NJ Needs To Send Christie A Message.... (4.00 / 2)

....we will NOT let him do to NJ what his fellow Republican governors are doing to Wisconsin and Ohio......if they get the legislative power that is precisely what they'll try to do!

For now, we need to elect Democrats across the board....but for the elections to come, progressives must become the dominate force in the Democratic party, and that means running in all the primaries and running for all the precinct position next year.

Given a choice NJ's people will choose clean reform transformative change candidates over the old machines of both parties.

We need radical/fundamental/transformative change asap!  We simply  don't have the luxury of taking fifty more years.

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by: Nick Lento @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 21:53:04 PM UTC

Nick makes sense (4.00 / 2)

If you really want to effect change within the Democratic Party take a lesson from the teabaggers and do it in the primaries and local conventions.

http://christiegonewild.blogsp...

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by: ken bank @ Mon Nov 07, 2011 at 22:35:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

AMEN (0.00 / 0)

We also have to engage the inside baseball games like leadership battles and redistricting.

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by: Bertin Lefkovic @ Tue Nov 08, 2011 at 00:05:25 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I agree totally (0.00 / 0)

We ought to get together after the election and strategize.

jrpickens@gmail.com

http://www.facebook.com/jeffpickens





Blog: Pick's Place

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by: jeffpickens @ Tue Nov 08, 2011 at 10:59:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]