November 5, 2009 - 11:56am
News

Gusciora blasts bosses for not focusing more intently on Corzine re-election

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton)

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) today blamed party bosses for deal-making when they should have been focused on re-electing Gov. Jon Corzine.

"Party leaders undermined the governor by having a party leadership fight," said Gusciora. "They reinforced the message that if Corzine won, the reins of power would be handed over to special interests."

Asked on Election Day morning about the intra-party deal cultivated by South Jersey Democratic Party leader George Norcross III and Newark North Ward Democratic Party boss Steve Adubato, Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts (D-Camden) dismissed its larger-scale impact on voter production.

"It's inside baseball and affected very few people beyond Trenton," said Roberts of a North-South deal that would oust Senate President Richard Codey (D-Roseland) in exchange for Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney (D-West Deptford), and launch Assemblywoman Sheila Oliver (D-East Orange) into the lower house leadership chair being vacated by Roberts.

The object of a state investigation, Newark's North Ward party organization turned out 1,000 fewer votes for Corzine on Election Day than it did in 2005. In South Jersey, the Democratic Party machine was unable to prevent Gloucester County - Sweeney's homebase - from going into the column of Chris Christie, who defeated Corzine statewide, 49% to 45%. 

Adamant in his belief that the dimensions of the battle went beyond the corridors of Trenton, Gusciora also criticized the Corzine campaign.

"Jon Corzine deserved re-election," said the assemblyman. "He did everything tehnically correct, but his message wasn't well conveyed. The campaign decision to stay away from 101.5 just fed into the electorate's anger out there that there needed to be wholesale change."

Max Pizarro is a PolitickerNJ.com Reporter and can be reached via email at max@politicsnj.com.

Comments

That Safe District Must be Nice Reed


Because if you even had Hamilton you'd be done too.

11/05/09 12:10 pm

Hamilton is a cesspool


And I'd take Trenton any day.

Seriously, you can keep them. The entire lot of them are truly awful people.

11/05/09 12:23 pm

Unbelievable Arrogance


Yes, Jon Corzine lost because the party bosses were fighting. It had nothing to with with the fact that Jon Corzine was a lousy Governor who spent over $20 million to win and still couldn't because New Jersey voters didn't want him in office anymore.

Unreal.

"Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do."- Benjamin Franklin

11/05/09 2:30 pm

Low turnout in the north


Low turnout in the north ward? Do you think theres a connection with Christys first event being in the north ward?

11/05/09 7:17 pm

Blah blah blah


The reason Corzine got ousted was not because of any intra-party squabbles. It was because he was not a good governor and a majority of New Jersey voters knew that and made a change.
Maybe Gusciora and others like him ought to wake up and smell the cesspool.

11/06/09 8:24 am

Norcross Cheated with Vote By Mail


He was too busy getting Moriarty Elected with CHEATER VOTE BY MAIL BALLOTS. Gloucester Township and Lindenwald had a hey day knocking out Republican candidates one by one with Fraud. That's why Corzine lost. The mail in didn't work. Christie, a little advice, GET RID OF GEORGE NORCROSS NOW BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.

11/07/09 2:12 am