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What's Next in NJ-5?

by: Matthew Jordan

Sun Nov 16, 2008 at 12:23:20 PM EST

After a disappointing 14% loss in a year when Democrats made gains all across the country NJ-5 can seem like a lost cause. At the least, I thought we would build upon Paul Aronsohn's gains and put Garrett in a vulnerable position going into 2010 and redistricting. Unfortunately, that didn't happen and will make national and statewide support more unlikely in the next election cycle. That's fine, as Assemblywoman Stender learned the hard way, you can't win elections without the interests within the district being organized and motivated.

There are several steps that can be taken to building an infrastructure, with an emphasis on a town-by-town basis, to keep constituents aware of Garrett's abysmal record and allow the candidate in 2010 to hit the ground running with a fully functioning field operation.

To start I think we need a district blog, which can hopefully recruit bloggers from this site that can cover all of the geographic regions of the district. By recruiting local bloggers from separate parts of the district we can establish what the concerns are on the local level and give the eventual candidate a platform of issues (and hopefully shortcomings on Garrett's part) that the eventual nominee can exploit. Moreover, we can recruit local Democratic Mayors and elected officials to author Op-Eds on the site to voice their concerns and raise the issues that Garrett isn't delivering on.

Matthew Jordan :: What's Next in NJ-5?

Additionally, one pitfall of the last few cycles is that not enough emphasis has been put on the Western part of the district. I understand that most of the votes are coming from Bergen County, but even if the Democrat wins a majority there, they will still lose the election because of the big majorities Garrett wins in Passaic, Sussex, and Warren counties.

Thirdly, we need to build an e-mail listserv (hopefully with some help from Paul Aronsohn and the Abate and Shulman campaigns) to keep people informed until 2010 and a nominee is chosen, and hopefully be a way we can raise money through small dollar donations. On a side note, the infighting and bickering between Shulman and Abate supporters needs to stop. It's counterproductive; we're all on the same team, and we need to start working together and put past issues behind us.

Finally, we need to organize all of the elected officials in the district and get them involved. There are Mayors, Council Members, Freeholders, a County Executive, and others who all have political bases that need to be informed and motivated. I'm in the process of building a list of all the elected officials in the district, and building upon my earlier theme of breaking the district into regions, we need to have an emphasis on tapping into the base of elected officials of the district and turning that into votes for our nominee. They all have a vested interest in electing a Democratic Congressman who can help them steer aid and funding to their municipalities.

These are just a few suggestions, but it seems to me that there are a lot of people on this site who are willing to invest time into unseating Garrett. Anyone from the district who wants to contribute to the district blog and lives in NJ-5 please e-mail me, matthewpjordan@gmail.com, and hopefully we can get something off the ground soon.

Tags: nj-5, 2010, Paul Aronsohn, Dennis Shulman, Camille Abate, NJ5, (All Tags)

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What's Next in NJ-5? | 6 comments

Anderson for Congress! (0.00 / 0)

http://www.hackettstownlife.co...

by: Kire @ Mon Nov 17, 2008 at 02:16:13 AM UTC

by: you @ soon

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I'm so biased, this comment should be ignored (4.00 / 1)

1)Non affiliated voters are the key to winning in NJ-5. Period.
2) If you cant see the connection between the up coming 2009 races, from the muni level up, to any 2010 run by any dem in NJ-5, then pass the pipe thats gotta be some good stuff.

Check out my 3 paragraph primer on Polywell Fusion.

by: FogerRox @ Mon Nov 17, 2008 at 18:56:55 PM UTC

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Yes, Rog, It *IS* All Connected...Thanks! n/t (0.00 / 0)

by: Nick Lento @ Mon Nov 17, 2008 at 19:59:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

well.... (0.00 / 0)

1. Who would dispute that? Of course they are, they make up a majority of the district.
2. Who can't see that connection? Of course those 2009 races are important.

by: Matthew Jordan @ Mon Nov 17, 2008 at 21:34:34 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

NJ5 is winnable (0.00 / 0)

However, there are even more important keys than infrastructure.

1. The Candidate. There is not a doubt in my mind that if we had a well known candidate in 2008(i.e. elected official known throughout bergen) who was popular throughout Bergen County and was well versed that Dems could've won here this year. We didn't, and we haven't for the last 4 elections. It seems like every elected official in Bergen is just to afraid to come out of their hole and run.

2. Issues. We need someone who is extremely well versed on the issues and is going to lay out a clear plan that they would like to introduce based on the most important issues around election time that give a good contrast to Garrett's plans, rather than just attacking his plans.

3. The Campaign team. The campaign for the candidate must be VERY experienced to win. I know that the knock on Stender's race was she let DC get to involved but I don't buy that. Her problem was her message which was a pro-choice message in a year where this wasn't even a major issue. An experienced DC campaign manager should have the ability to be able to assess the district and run a race accordingly.

4. Fundraising. Bottom line is its going to take at least 1.5 million to win this race.

5. Lastly is the message. It should've become quite clear to everyone following 5th district races by now that you CANNOT win by just attacking Garrett. Independents who will decide this election don't care for that. Just attacking Garrett accomplishes nothing, Independents are NOT going to vote for someone just because Garrett is bad, they need to get a feel for the candidates issues so they can decide who can do more for them. Attacks are obviously useful but only if they are tied in with Real plans and Real issues otherwise we will take another step back in this district.

Just my thoughts. Let me know what you all think.

by: Erik Preuss @ Thu Nov 20, 2008 at 23:07:56 PM UTC

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well... (0.00 / 0)

1. I agree, but I'm not sold on the candidate being from Bergen County. The BCDO is like cancer in that county. I think a Democrat from the Western part of the District can go into Bergen, speak about their bread-and-butter issues (mostly taxes), and become a breath of fresh air. Again, Mayor Jim Sekelsky of Ogdensburg, if he wants in the race, would be a dream candidate.

2. We need a person well versed on local issues. All politics are local, and if our candidate speaks to the every day issues facing NJ-5 residents, he/she is more likely to win. But again, if you want someone who has executive experience and is an Iraq War Vet, Sekelsky is your man.

3. Agreed, but he needs to surround himself with people that know that ins-and-outs of the district.

4. Agreed, again wouldn't it be great if we could recruit someone who was a John Kerry fund raiser in 2004? Quite convenient a certain Mayor in Sussex County was.

5. 100% agreed. This has been the downfall of every candidate who has ever faced off against Garrett.

Is it obvious who I think should run in 2010?

by: Matthew Jordan @ Fri Nov 21, 2008 at 02:18:51 AM UTC

[ Parent ]