McCain's NJ campaign: 'We're here and plan to stay'

If the McCain campaign’s decision to end operations in Michigan doesn’t exactly produce a rush of new resource opportunities in New Jersey, McCain at least does not intend to fold up his Garden State headquarters, according to spokesman Peter Feldman.

"Obviously as we move closer to Election Day, the campaign is making strategic decisions about limited resources and taking a closer look at the electoral map," said the Woodbridge-based Feldman. "The McCain campaign continues to fight for New Jersey’s 15 electoral votes, which are still up for grabs.

"With resources coming out of Michigan, we expect more attention on the traditional battleground states like Pennsylvania and Ohio, but also other states like Maine and New Jersey," the spokesman added.

This weekend, McCain campaign volunteers focused their phone-banking efforts on the town of Bayonne, where a fiercely contested mayoral election features two Democratic candidates who repeatedly remind people it’s a nonpartisan municipal election, after all, and who won’t publicly endorse Sen. Barack Obama (D-Il.).

Based in Princeton, Obama's campaign operations here in New Jersey are bigger and better funded. According to Andrew Poag, the campaign employees 25 full-time workers, compared to five full-timers at Camp McCain. 

As was their plan from the beginning, Feldman said, McCain forces continue to target towns populated by so-called Reagan Democrats, including Sayreville, Hamilton, Carteret, and South Bergen. Moreover, sources in the City of Passaic say McCain’s national defense credentials and solid pro-Israel record make him a virtual lock with the town’s 2,000 Orthodox Jewish voters.

Last Thursday, state Sen. Sean Kean (R-Monmouth) keynoted a McCain rally at the Shore in a battleground county where the GOP also hopes McCain's numbers will be strong.

"Tomorrow we expect around 100 debate watching parties in the state," Feldman said. "And we will also be announcing another major New Jersey endorsement in the coming days. Stay tuned. Bottom line, we’re here and plan to stay."