Barack Obama

One of the more aggressive critics of Gov.-elect Chris Christie early in the campaign, U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-Paterson) today said he plans to reach out to Christie and establish working relations with him for the sake of New Jersey.

"I wish Chris Christie well," said Pascrell. "It's going to be a tough four years overcoming the last eight years of national inaction."

The former mayor of Paterson and veteran 8th District congressman last year mused on a potential bid for the governship in the event that Corzine did not seek re-election. 

Asked if he intends to run for governor in 2013, Pascrell said, "No, it's too early to talk about that now."

Pascrell said he has not talked to defeated Gov. Jon Corzine since the governor's loss to Christie on Tuesday.

"The governor was unable to overcome some unfavorable perceptions many voters had of him," said the congressman. "Most of the Democrats running for (the legislature) didn't run with the governor, and I think it's clear he was also unable to overcome that. He was not able to articulate what he accomplished. This governor accomplished a lot of things. The state budget is the same as it was four years ago. He was trying to do his part with the caps." 

Six out of ten New Jersey voters said that President Barack Obama was not a factor in their vote for governor, according to exit polls conducted by a consortium of major news organizations.  Among voters who said Obama's support guided them, 19% said he pushed them to Gov. Jon Corzine, and 20% said he helped them decide to vote for someone else.

Payne operating in the South Ward

NEWARK - U.S. Rep. Donald Payne (D-Newark) stands in front of headquarters on Bergen in the South Ward and he's guardedly optimistic.

The South Ward is now at 4,000 votes recorded, or a fifth of what the South Ward attained in 2008 for President Barack Obama. Before the end of Election Day, Payne wants to get 12,000 votes for Gov. Jon Corzine in this ward, the biggest in the city, and the one where Mayor Cory Booker is arguably the least popular.

This is former Mayor Sharpe James's old ward, and at the Galilee Baptist Church - the polling place in James's home district - turnout is relatively good.

At 3 p.m., the district recorded 301 votes, or 133 votes shy of half of the votes people here turned out last year for Obama.

"It's on target," says Payne of the south. "It's light compared to a presidential year - certainly compared to last year, but I think what we do here will enable us to eke out a narrow victory."

NEWARK - The North Ward reports good performance numbers.

"AS of 3 p.m., there were 4,400 votes cast," said North Ward Councilman Anibal Ramos. "That's about 42-43% of what it was last year (When Barack Obama was at the top of the ticket), so we're considering that to be good turnout."

The councilman's father, state Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Newark), overseeing operations days before Election Day.

NEWARK - West Ward Councilman Ronald C. Rice says his ward - overseen for over two decades by his father, state Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Newark) - is performing well early on Election Day.

"We just had our first round of numbers checks," Rice told PolitickerNJ.com.

The districts targeted for "surge" Obama voters are driving the numbers up to best expectations, Rice maintains. 

"In district 7, for example, the mark at the end of the day for Gov. Jon Corzine in 2005 was 200 votes at 8 p.m.," said the councilman. "As of noon today, that same district is reporting 92 votes.

NEWARK - Overall turnout in New Jersey's largest city is hovering near 30% of where it was last year when Barack Obama ultimately racked over 77,112 votes, according to Democratic Party sources on the ground.

That is below the goal of 50% the Corzine campaign wants in Newark, where incumbent Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine won 39,573 votes in 2005.

A South Ward source says operations are "humming, not buzzing."

The Democratic incumbent's targeted Obama allies - so-called "surge voters" - are going to the polls, however, the response by regular registered voters in other South Ward districts is light so far, says the source.

Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic), left, and Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco

Fighting for re-election in the 36th District, Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic) said an email blast today by a constiuent urging Orthodoz Jews to vote against Gov. Jon Corzine is not representative of the community's view of the incumbent Democratic Party governor.

"(Republican) Allen Shwartz's endorsement of Chris Christie is kind of like Richard Nixon endorsing the Republican candidate," said Schaer. "Our community is not in lockstep on the governor's race. Some rabbis are backing Christie, others are supporting Corzine. As a member of the Orthodoz Jewish community I've certainly made my overtures on behalf of the governor."

Shwartz in his email panned Corzine, in part using the governor's linkage to President Barack Obama as an argument against supporting the incumbent.

"Jon Corzine’s most visible proponent for the past month has been none other than President Barack Obama," Schwartz wrote on Passaic Today. "One doesn’t have to travel for long through Passaic, Lakewood, or Teaneck to see the signs of President Obama and Governor Corzine campaigning together, arm-in-arm.

The Democratic State Committee now admits paying for a robocall to Somerset County voters that slams Republican Chris Christie and promotes independent gubernatorial candidate Christopher Daggett.

A Democratic spokeswoman says the party’s chairman, Joe Cryan, was not aware of the robocalls when he denied that the state committee had anything to do with them yesterday afternoon.

Cryan, who told PolitickerNJ.com yesterday afternoon that the Democratic State Committee had “absolutely” nothing to do with the call, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The call angered Republicans and further fueled conspiracy theories that Daggett is in cahoots with the Corzine camp.  A disclaimer at the end says it was paid for by Victory ’09, “a project of the NJDSC” (Democratic State Committee), and gave the committee’s Trenton address.  

Daggett, for his part, disavowed the call.

“Voters hate robocalls. This is just another instance of the dishonest ways Democrats and Republicans use to win campaigns and to fool voters,” he said in a statement this afternoon. “It is little wonder more and more voters are rejecting these kind of desperate dirty tricks and turning to my campaign for a positive message about how to make New Jersey more affordable and competitive.’’

West Ward Councilman Ronald C. Rice

NEWARK - The crowd spilled out onto the pavement following the rally with President Barack Obama and just in case there was any doubt about why he was in town, a TV truck broadcasting flatscreen images of Gov. Jon Corzine in action started circling the arena blasting out the message, "Corzine, Corzine, Corzine."

The crowd, of course, was still talking about Obama.

"Awesome," said Assemblywoman L. Grace Spencer (D-Newark), who was positioned on the floor in front of the stage where the president spoke at the Prudential Center said in response to a PolitickerNJ.com question. "There is a humility to him - unmistakable. It's easy to see that he worked his way up the hard way."

"I'm writing a book called 'Obama Chicks,'" said Pam Jasper, a certified pilot, wearing a hat with "Obama Chicks" printed on it in pink letters.

But with less than 40 hours to go before Election Day, the president is delivering more than inspirational presence to Newark. 

President Barack Obama's two New Jersey appearances in support of Gov. Jon Corzine today will remind voters that the two share a partisan affiliation in a state where there are 700,000 more Democrats than Republicans.  In a race that is too close to call - and with Republican Christopher Christie holding a commanding lead among the state's 2.4 million unaffiliated voters, Corzine must win his base vote big to win a second term.  That's why Obama has been here twice in recent weeks, along with Bill Clinton and Joseph Biden.

As expected, Obama drew big crowds in North and South Jersey.  The event at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden may have been ill-timed: the Walt Whitman Bridge and several major roadways were shut down around the same time New Jerseyans were traveling to Philadelphia for the Giants/Eagles game. 

A presidential visit caps a great month for the Prudential Center, which appears to have a deal to bring the Nets to Newark and a peace accord with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.  Obama's route from Newark Liberty Airport to downtown did not appear to inconvenience other parts of the state, and Penn Station was packed on a Sunday - a good sign for Mayor Cory Booker.