As the final weeks of the Republican primary unfold, Chris Christie and Steve Lonegan will be busy campaigning, trading criticisms of one another, and making the case on the air waves and the internet that they alone are best suited to take on Jon Corzine in this November's gubernatorial election.
Corzine, and whoever wins the GOP nomination on Primary Day, will also undertake the historic task of selecting an individual to run as their respective party's candidate to be the first Lieutenant Governor in New Jersey history. Below the fold is a list of ten possible Republican contenders. It is subjective and, more than anything, written to solicit the opinions of Blue Jersey readers on the strengths and weaknesses of each potential pick.
Please click the headline, read on, comment away, and look out this Thursday for an analysis of potential Democratic choices for Lieutenant Governor.
Diane Allen was first elected to the Legislature in 1995. She is considered one of the moderate members of the State Senate's Republican Caucus and has a record of success in passing legislation into law that few of her colleagues can rival. In 2002, she sought the GOP nomination to run for U.S. Senator against Robert Torricelli. Although she lost the primary to Doug Forrester, she was endorsed by The New York Times, which noted "her support of abortion rights and her opposition to capital punishment give her credentials as a moderate Republican who can appeal to a broader base of New Jersey residents." Health problems prevented her from entering last year's race against Lautenberg but she remains a serious contender for statewide office. In many ways, her positions are anathema to the conservative wing of the New Jersey GOP. However, should Steve Lonegan accomplish the unlikely feat of winning his party's primary, a moderate like Allen might balance the ticket and appeal to middle class suburbanites.
State Senator Bill Baroni
Like Allen, State Senator Bill Baroni hails from the moderate wing of the Republican establishment. As a legislator, he has earned a reputation for working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to tackle issues ranging from ethics reform to environmental policy. Baroni is a fierce campaigner. In 2003, he unseated Assemblyman Gary Schaer by knocking on every door in a district that favored Democrats. Four years later, he won the seat of retiring State Senator Peter Inverso. The only challenge Baroni faces is from the right. He has drawn criticism from conservatives for a number of key votes (e.g., paid family leave). Articulate, intelligent, and politically savvy, Baroni has a statewide future. Whether it's as the GOP candidate to be New Jersey's first Lieutenant Governor remains to be seen.
State Senator Jen Beck
Then Assemblywoman Jen Beck's 2007 defeat of State Senator Ellen Karcher was a bright spot in an otherwise dreary year for New Jersey Republicans. Since moving up to the Senate, she has emerged as one of the party's leading voices and has not shied away from hitting Democrats hard on issues that play well with Republican voters. Beck's grassroots connections run deep. Before entering public office she served as chief of staff to Assemblyman Joe Azzolina. Afterward, she went to work as a State Street lobbyist. In a year when many expect Governor Corzine to select a female running mate, the GOP may look to Beck as an effective counterbalance. However, like the rest of her party, she is long on criticism and short on specifics. That, along with her history as a lobbyist, the opposition research from the 2007 campaign, and the political meetings she had with Christie while he was U.S. Attorney may make her an easy target come the fall campaign.
Assemblyman Jon Bramnick
Assemblyman Jon Bramnick is one of the most ambitious politicians in New Jersey. Elected to the State Assembly in 2003, he has distinguished himself as a gifted speaker who possesses a good grasp of policy issues. An early Christie supporter and fundraiser, he is a bull at the microphone and a frequent face in the media criticizing Governor Corzine and Democrats. As a result, Bramnick is well positioned to lobby for a spot on the gubernatorial ticket. Yet conservatives smarting from a Lonegan defeat may have a difficult time accepting his pro-choice views. Should the reverse occur and Lonegan pull off an upset, Bramnick has a better chance of being chosen to run for Lieutenant Governor of Guam than he does being asked to run in New Jersey.
Millionaire John Crowley
Last year, John Crowley's short lived but aborted campaign for the U.S. Senate raised eyebrows in both Democratic and Republican circles. Although he has never held public office, his commendable work researching cures for genetic diseases makes him an attractive pick for a GOP nominee looking to appeal to independent voters. One could also make the case that Crowley's a Trenton outsider ready to battle the status quo. The matter of his personal fortune also comes into play given the scenario - however unlikely - of Crowley self-funding, allowing the campaign to bypass public financing and compete with Team Corzine's vast resources. All of those pluses considered, he is unknown to most New Jerseyans and it remains unclear whether he has the fire in the belly to endure the scrutiny and tempo of a statewide campaign.
Clerk Kathleen Donovan
Last November, Bergen County Clerk Kathleen Donovan won a tight race for re-election despite the best efforts of one of the strongest Democratic organizations in New Jersey. Although Republican insiders denied her a chance to run for County Executive in 2002 and 2006, she may be the eventual gubernatorial nominee's best shot at carrying vote rich Bergen County (no Republican has ever won statewide without carrying it). Despite being New Jersey's political equivalent of Houdini, the former state party chair has never run statewide and Democrats may question her ability to be number two at the State House after twenty years of maintaining land records.
Sheriff Kim Guadagno
Before her 2007 election as Monmouth County Sheriff, Kim Guadagno had served as a Commissioner of Monmouth Beach, Assistant U.S. Attorney and an Assistant State Attorney General. Seen as a rising star in Republican politics, she has dismissed any interest in running for Lieutenant Governor. That said, she does not intend on ruling the option out. The addition of Guadagno to the ticket would help any one of the potential GOP nominees define himself as the candidate of law and order, but she has only been in office for one year, and while her resume is long, her selection may open her to the charge that she is more of a political opportunist than a public servant.
State Senator Tom Kean, Jr.
With Christie traveling the state calling himself a Tom Kean Republican, it seems only logical that the popular former governor's son be included on any shortlist for Lieutenant Governor. Tom Kean, Jr. has received generally positive reviews for his work as Minority Leader in the State Senate, but memories of his amateur and negative 2006 campaign for U.S. Senate may linger in the minds of many voters. Despite his name recognition, Junior had a difficult time gaining traction as a statewide candidate, but the GOP continues to look back fondly on the Kean years, and he may find his way onto the ballot alongside the eventual gubernatorial nominee. If that nominee is Christie, watch for Democrats to raise the specter of the then U.S. Attorney's fishing expedition into U.S. Senator Bob Menendez's actions as landlord to a federally subsidized nonprofit. The so-called investigation turned up nothing but it did provide Junior with much needed back up. To critics, it was the first sign of Christie's willingness to politicize his office for partisan gain.
State Senator Joe Kyrillos
State Senator Joe Kyrillos knows where the bodies are buried in New Jersey's political graveyard. A veteran lawmaker and former state party chair, he is a close friend and longtime booster of Chris Christie. While a formidable force in his base of Monmouth County, his connection with Christie could complicate the former U.S. Attorney's efforts to paint himself as the honest corruption buster. After all, it was Kyrillos who recommended Christie to the Bush Administration and it was Kyrillos' Republican State Committee that then benefited from thousands of dollars in contributions from the Christie family. His selection as running mate would bring the issue of pay to play into the spotlight. At a time when Christie's campaign is struggling to push back against reports that their candidate rewarded former associates with no-bid contracts, it seems unlikely that Kyrillos makes the short list.
Mayor Brian Levine
Poor Brian Levine. Long before Lonegan supporters successfully petitioned for his removal from the ballot, the Franklin Township Mayor's campaign for the Republican gubernatorial nomination appeared doomed to defeat. An accountant by trade, Levine is well regarded in Democratic leaning Franklin for his management of municipal finances. Moreover, he impressed many party regulars with his plain spoken style and thorough understanding of the fiscal challenges confronting New Jersey. Yet plainspoken can also be called boring. Levine is an unlikely choice.
