Brian Levine

Former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, with Scotch Plains Mayor Nancy Malool, at a GOP mixer earlier this month.

Former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie won a “non-binding” straw poll conducted by the Camden County Republican Committee (CCRC) at last night’s county committee meeting, according to a release issued by the CCRC. 

The four Republican gubernatorial candidates appeared on the ballot and the results were overwhelmingly favorable to Christie, who received 77% to former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan’s 23%.  

Assemblyman Rick Merkt (R-Mendham) and Franklin Township Mayor Brian D. Levine did not receive any votes.

Franklin Twp. Mayor Brian D. Levine (left) poses with Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham)

FRANKLIN TWP. – Good government Mayor Brian D. Levine tonight told PolitickerNJ.com he will formally enter the Republican gubernatorial primary before the end of the month and probably next week. 

Levine’s challenge for the right to face incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine officially makes it a four-man contest among Levine, Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham), former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, and former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie.  

“I believe in bottom up rather than top down politics and I will be running my usual grassroots campaign, which is how I have run and won two elections as mayor of Franklin,” said Levine, a certified public accountant and pro-choice fiscal conservative who promises a shoe leather campaign in search of small dollar donations.

Levine’s entrance into the race appears on its face to create a case of two against two.

Gov.  Jon Corzine has a 43%-40% approval rating and leads Republican Christopher Christie 36%-32%, according to a new Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey poll released this morning.  Corzine leads three other potential Republican candidates: Steve Lonegan 45%-29%, Rick Merkt 41%-27%, and Brian Levine 43%-27%.

More than six out of ten New Jersey voters (61%) say that Corzine should release his personal e-mails with Carla Katz just to “clear the air,” while just 29% believe he should keep them private.  35% of voters say they are less likely to vote for Christie because he served in George W. Bush’s administration, while 14% say more likely.  It makes no difference to half the voters.

Gov. Jon Corzine has a 7-point lead over Republican Chris Christie in a new Fairleigh Dickinson University poll. In the GOP primary, Christie, the former U.S. Attorney, has a 17-point lead over former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan.

Gov. Jon Corzine leads Republican Christopher Christie by seven points, 40%-33%, and has a 45%-40% approval rating, according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University poll released this morning.   Christie, the former U.S. Attorney who announced yesterday that he would run for Governor, is unknown to more than half (56%) of the New Jerseyans polled.

In head-to-heads against other Republican candidates, Corzine leads former Bogota Mayor Steven Lonegan, 46%-28%, and Assemblyman Rick Merkt (R-Mendham) by a 43%-23% margin.  Lonegan is unknown to 71% of the state, while 89% don't recognize Merkt.  A fourth candidate, Franklin Township Mayor Brian Levine, was not included in the survey.

In a Republican primary matchup, Christie leads Lonegan 32%-15%, with Merkt running third at 5%. 

Christie has a 50% name ID among Republicans, while Lonegan is at 44% and Merkt is at 14%.

GOP candidate for governor Chris Christie arrives at the party at the Marco Polo on Thursday evening.

SUMMIT –To the oft-muttered intra-party charge that Republicans plan to coronate former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie as their candidate for governor, Union County Republican Chairman Phil Morin said his organization stands on its record. 

Last year, millionaire businesswoman Anne Evans Estabrook was supposedly the money candidate for U.S. Senate. Then the county committee here awarded the line to erstwhile underdog state Sen. Joseph Pennacchio (R-Morris), dropping the jaws of not only Estabrook’s campaign infrastructure but the party establishment in all 21 counties.  

After Estabrook pulled the plug on her candidacy owing to health problems, Morin resisted pressure to hold another convention to dump Pennacchio and swap in the state GOP’s latest frontrunner, former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, who would ultimately go on to secure the statewide nomination. 

Morin’s view was Jersey Joe earned it the hard way, he should have it.

Although he pointed out that Chris Christie’s filing doesn’t constitute a formal declaration to run for governor, today’s news didn’t surprise gubernatorial candidate Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham), Christie’s former running mate.  

“A lot of people file papers and then don’t run, but he’s clearly been pointing in that direction for months,” said Merkt. “I welcome his entry into the race. I hope this is competitive race where the public picks the candidate. I look forward to being able to express vigorous differences on policy in a way that’s civil and respectful and doesn’t demean the office we’re seeking.” 

A declared candidate since last fall, Merkt has positioned himself as the only one among former U.S. Attorney Christie, former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan and Franklin Township Brian Levine who possesses state government experience.

Former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan today took credit for what he described as accelerating Chris Christie’s formal entrance into the Republican primary for governor.  

“I’m kind of proud of myself,” said Lonegan, himself a candidate. “I filed $400,000 in matching funds and people jump. Within 48 hours of me announcing my matching funds, he gets in the race.”  

A leader of New Jersey’s conservative movement, Lonegan said he still does not know where Christie, a former U.S. Attorney with a crime fighting track record, stands on the rest of the issues. 

“He opposes corruption,” said Lonegan. “So do I. But now that he’s declared and on the battlefield, we’re going to start comparing stands on issues. It’s going to be the experience of a mayor and business owner, versus an attorney. This is a classic case of a conservative, low-tax Republican versus the status quo.

Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie will enter the race for Governor today.

Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie is expected to announce today that he intends to seek the Republican nomination for Governor.  Christie will file formal papers with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.

Christie, 46, served as New Jersey’s federal prosecutor from 2002 to 2008, where he led a virtual war on political corruption.  His convictions included former Newark Mayor Sharpe James, former Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Wayne Bryant, and Essex County Executive James Treffinger.

Getty Images Photo

Gov. Jon Corzine is expected to seek re-election to a second term in 2009.

Look for former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie to file papers this month as a candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor.   The former federal prosecutor is expected to become the establishment GOP candidate in a primary against former Bogota Mayor Steven Lonegan, the leader of the conservative wing of the New Jersey GOP.   Two other candidates, Assemblyman Richard Merkt and Franklin Township Mayor Brian D. Levine, are also mulling gubernatorial bids.

Incumbent Jon Corzine is expected to seek a second term as Governor, and is likely to run unopposed in the Democratic primary.  Not since Brendan Byrne faced nine rivals, including two Congressmen and a member of his own cabinet, in 1977 has a sitting Governor faced serious opposition for the nomination of his or her own party.  Corizne has struggled to win the approval of voters, but he's a Democrat in a very blue state, and he is expected to spend a huge amount of money to get re-elected.  It will be hard for any Republican to beat him.

If budget issues or e-mails make it impossible for Corzine to continue his race, look for a spirited Democratic primary with Senate President (and former Governor) Richard Codey as the front runner.

New Jerseyans will elect a Lieutenant Governor for the first time in 2009.  The new state law requires the winners of the major party gubernatorial primaries to pick a running mate, much like vice presidential candidates are designated after a presidential nominee is picked.

Already registered with the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) to run for governor, Franklin Township Mayor Brian D. Levine today unveiled a portion of his economic plan, essentially a macro model based on some of the things he’s done at the local level.  

The Republican’s plan focuses on growing a manufacturing economy, eliminating the 2.5 percent tax on new business construction, incentivizing jobs growth through loan guarantees and tax credits to build business and give priorities to New Jersey college graduates, and using federal assistance to obtain and develop foreclosed properties as affordable housing.

“The U.S. and New Jersey have been losing manufacturing jobs but the town in which I am mayor, Franklin, has been growing manufacturing and warehouse jobs,” said Levine.