GOP gameplan may hinge on what happens at Dems' special LD 19 convention

WOODBRIDGE - As Democrats continue to wage a low-grade civil war in the 19th District, Republicans Richard Piatkowski and Peter Kothari have struggled to stay in tandem and are now mutually feeling party pressure to get out of the race, depending on what happens at Wednesday's special convention, where Democrats seek a successor to embattled South Amboy Mayor John T. O'Leary.

Again they're having a hard time agreeing on a strategy.

Kothari says he would consider backing down for the good of the Republican cause, while Piatkowski says he's intent on being the candidate from Perth Amboy.

"Whatever the party wants, I can do it," said the former, when asked if he's heard rumors about the Republican Party dumping him for a candidate with potentially better name ID, strategic import and more resources to take advantage of rival party blunders.

"I will definitely consider it," the GOP Assembly candidate from Woodbridge said when asked if he could leave the contest. "My priority is getting Chris Christie elected as our next governor. We also have to reclaim the 19th District. If the party wants to put someone here it believes would make our chances more strong, then I'm ready to fight for that candidate."

Piatkowski defended both himself and Kothari. He argues the two of them have not yet received adequate resources from the party to put up a winning fight in this 2-1 Democratic Party bastion where the majority has suffered from corruption charges, ongoing party infighting, low-polling numbers registered by incumbent Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine, and arguably Christie's repeated insistence on competing for Latino votes.

"I don't want to go," said Piatkowski, a realtor and City Hall activist whom Democratic Councilman Ken Balut - a Christie and Piatkowski supporter - credits with being the main citizen force in the fight against Assemblyman Joe Vas, the former mayor who suspended his legislative reelection bid when the state Attorney General's Office downed him with corruption charges.

"If i were such a bad person, I wouldn't be running for the Assembly," Piatkowski told PolitickerNJ.com.

Despite their less than coordinated campaign, the Perth Amboy half of the team said he doesn't believe Kothari should exit the race either - regardless of what the Democrats do next week at their special convention.

"Peter has a lot of support, and I don't understand how he would believe he could not be a strong part of the ticket," said Piatkowski, who supporter Mayor Steve Lonegan in the gubernatorial primary. "I haven't talked to him about this, but he shouldn't second-guess himself. He's known and he has resources. It's noble of him to say that he would get out for the good of the party, but there's no way I want to step down from this. I was in this race back when Joe was going to run, and the party said I would have their support for my candidacy."

District sources say that as the state's Sept. 16th deadline for swapping candidates looms, what Republicans decide to do about Kothari and Piatkowski hinges heavily on the Democrats' next move.

Regarding Kothari's point about Christie, those same sources say Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac - chief executive of the district's biggest town - follows an inverse pattern of priorities.

The mayor, who's backing hometown candidate retired Edison Municipal Judge Craig Coughlin in next week's Democratic Party convention showdown between Coughlin and retired Superior Court Judge Mathias Rodriguez of Perth Amboy to fill a vacancy created first by Vas's and then later O'Leary's departure from the field, wants first to protect his base: the city council.

That's one of the main reasons why Coughlin - and not Ward One Councilman Charles Kenny - is running for the party's backing as the politically connected Woodbridge candidate.

A 12-year veteran who's up for reelection this year, Kenny has more value right now as a local prospect. 

McCormac's next zone of concern is the 19th District, and in this regard he has no qualms about backing a Woodbridge ally against Perth Amboy Mayor Wilda Diaz and her candidate, Rodriguez. If it's town versus town in a political fight, McCormac is the mayor of Woodbridge, not Perth Amboy.

Finally, while Kothari's first priority is Christie, McCormac's last priority is Corzine.

Certainly the old school McCormac - treasurer under former Gov. Dick Codey who was one of the people displaced by the Wall Street team Corzine planted in Trenton - never felt close to Corzine.

Some statewide Democrats quietly affirm that Corzine's reelection chances would be helped by the presence of a Latino candidate in the 19th District - someone who could help drive Democratic Party numbers in Perth Amboy, a city where 70% of the nearly 50,000-strong population is Hispanic, while complementing veteran Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Sayreville). 

While grudgingly acknowledging McCormac's local allegiances, they can't help but discern in the mayor's backing of Coughlin over Rodriguez, a Puerto Rican with roots in Woodbridge and over 30 years in Perth Amboy, a political dagger pointed at the Corzine camp. 

McCormac won't comment.

Republicans are alert to the turmoil, and sources say in the event Coughlin defeats Rodriguez next week, the GOP would have added incentive to dump Piatkowski and Kothari and swap in a duo that would include a Latino from Perth Amboy, who would be well connected enough to give Republicans a shot here, while also providing the added bonus of ginning local support for Christie in a town that in other circumstances should be a lock for Corzine. 

Sources say one team suggested is Sayreville Mayor Kennedy O'Brien and Perth Amboy Republican Chairman Reyes Ortega, who could expect to be better financed through state party channels than the GOP ticket currently in play, according to sources; but Ortega evidently doesn't to run. 

O'Brien could not be reached for comment.

In addition to a committed Piatkowski, who was used to standing up to power in the form of Joe Vas, and who may not go down without a fight, even it it pits him against his own party, Republicans who like other options must contend with the idea that a game change that would leave the Republicans without a candidate from Woodbridge could weaken - not help - their chances here.

But the calculation of a GOP intent on electing Christie governor and sensing opportunity among Latino voters might be that McCormac's short-term gain now is of less strategic importance than Corzine's political demise.