EMILY's List

Anyone who watched NJN on election night witnessed it: Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Fanwood), who had been the favorite in the 7th District House race, choking back tears as she attempted to explain -- and no doubt understand -- why she lost to state Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Flemington).

It was a particularly bruising moment for Stender, who two years earlier had come within one point of ousting incumbent U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-Warren Twp).

"It was really a crushing defeat for me," Stender said today.

It was also a huge political comeback for Lance, who was seen by fellow Republicans during his time as Senate Minority Leader as not partisan or aggressive enough. Facing a potential challenge for that post last year by state Sen. Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Westfield), Lance withdrew to become the ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Six weeks after her loss, Stender is making the best of it, relishing her first holiday season in the last two election cycles during which she does not have to focus on raising money.

Today, Stender sought to dispel the notion that her campaign failed in large part because of internal divisions and pressure from outside groups to take on out-of-state staff and focus on less pertinent issues like birth control.

"That stuff is nonsense. It's concocting drama in the aftermath," said Stender, referring to contentions that EMILY's List officials had pressured her to put Washington, DC-based staffers in control of the campaign.

If Linda Stender loses her race for Congress next week, New Jersey Democrats are prepared to blame Emily's List and other Washington-based organizations for her defeat, according to sources within the Stender campaign.  The seventh district House seat has been viewed as a likely pickup for Democrats, but internal polling from both campaigns is showing that Republican Leonard Lance can win the seat that Stender nearly took away from retiring U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson two years ago.  Suddenly worried about blowing an opportunity to take a seat the GOP has held since 1956, Democrats are bringing in big guns, like former President Bill Clinton, to help Stender win.

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