Barack Obama

2008 Democratic Presidential contender Sen. Barack Obama is scheduled to attend private fundraising events on May 14th in Montclair, Jersey City and Princeton, according to Obama for America campaign invitations issued to Democrats in the two towns.

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Hillary Clinton has a 40%-23% lead over Barack Obama among Democratic primary voters in New Jersey, according to a new Strategic Vision poll released today.

Among Republicans, Rudy Giuliani is ahead of John McCain by 34 points, 49%-15%.

President George W. Bush has an upside-down approval rating in New Jersey of 24%-67%.

The Obama ’08 campaign has hired grassroots New Jersey volunteer Damian Bednarz to work in the organization’s New Hampshire office.

Newark City Councilman Ron Rice, Jr., at a Barack Obama fundraiser in HobokenSen. Barack Obama’s supporters say their man is the only credible candidate in the race for President in 2008 who from the beginning opposed the Iraq War.

Stuck like a lady in cement with her Iraq vote, Sen. Hillary Clinton is also a robotic study in how to be uninspiring, Obama’s supporters say. Meanwhile, former Sen. John Edwards talks about the good judgment required of a President. But in his biggest moment as an elected official, indeed that critical moment when he could have shown his own good judgment, Edwards voted to authorize George W. Bush to take the U.S. to war in Iraq.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani leads every Democratic presidential candidate in New Jersey, and enjoys a massive lead in New Jersey’s 2008 GOP primary, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has a 38%-16% lead over Sen. Barack Obama, with former Sen. John Edwards at 9%. Former Vice President Al Gore, who is not a candidate at this time, gets 12% in a New Jersey Democratic primary.

In general election matchups, Giuliani leads Clinton by nine points (49%-40%), Obama by ten points (48%-38%), and Edwards by seven points (48%-41%).

Hillary Rodham Clinton and Rudy Giuliani enjoy massive leads among New Jersey primary voters, according to a Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey poll released today.  Among Democrats, Clinton leads Barack Obama by a 41%-22% margin, with 13% for John Edwards.  Giuliani leads John McCain 49%-19% among GOP primary voters, with Mitt Romney receiving 6%.  

The Democrats have a definite gender gap: women back Clinton over Obama, 50%-16%, but among men, it is a virtual dead heat. Open voters who lean toward one of the major parties have a slight preference for McCain and Edwards. 

Both Democratic presidential candidates lead Republican John McCain in the contest for New Jersey’s fifteen electoral votes in November, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released early this morning. Clinton beats McCain 47%-41%, and Obama leads 46%-39%. Obama leads McCain among independent voters, while Clinton has a clear advantage among women.

Obama, who lost the February 5 New Jersey primary by ten percentage points, is more popular in New Jersey than Clinton. Obama has a 58%-21% favorability rating, while Clinton’s is at 50%-43%. McCain is at 52%-28%.

Some circumstantial evidence that Barack Obama has made a final decision to seek the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination: Seton Hall Law Professor Mark Alexander told about five dozen students in his Constitutional Law class yesterday that they should expect a new Professor to take over in about three weeks. Alexander told his students that he will serve as Policy Director for the Obama campaign; he held a similar post for Bill Bradley in 2000.

Democratic sources suggest that presidential candidate Barack Obama is on the cusp of a major New Jersey endorsement: Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy, who is expected to become the Hudson County Democratic Chairman in June. Healy and his Chief Counsel, William Matsikoudis, held a lengthy, private meeting with Obama in Washington. With U.S. Senator Robert Menendez stepping away from local politics, Healy is the most powerful politician in Hudson County.

Presidential candidate Barack Obama has picked up the support of a major New Jersey fundraiser: financier Orin Kramer. A former White House aide in the Carter administration, Kramer is viewed as a key player in the move to recruit Jon Corzine to run for the United States Senate in 2000.