George Dredden

MOUNTAIN LAKES – Chris Christie’s message of renewing New Jersey’s cities sparks a lone shout of enthusiasm in this mostly Caucasian crowd but ultimately produces little battle cry effect here at the Zeris Inn on Thursday night.

“I was born in Newark 46 years ago,” Christie explains. 

“I’m sorry,” comes the rejoinder of a man in the back of the banquet hall.

Christie the former U.S. Attorney says he is uniquely qualified to make the state’s urban areas safe, and vows as governor to entice businesses with tax incentives and invigorated business zones to move in to places like Newark.  

That commitment from the candidate rouses at least one real estate person in the crowd who off the record says New Jersey’s suburban experiment is essentially built-out and its service sector economy limited, and the only logical way the state can regain an edge is to revitalize its urban areas.

Morris County Freeholder Doug Cabana announced today that he has selected two veteran operatives to help run his District 25 Assembly campaign, both of whom worked earlier this year on state Sen. Joseph Pennacchio’s (R-Morris) unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign.

George Dredden of Parsippany will serve as Cabana’s campaign manager, and Dan Gallic will serve as political consultant. 

Dredden is the former executive director of the National Black Republican Council of NJ, and former vice-president of the Parsippany-Troy Hills Republican Club. 

Republican political consultant George Dredden acknowledged today that he would serve as Republican State Chairman if asked. 

“The position is not vacant. It’s Tom Wilson’s,” he said. 

There is, however, a good chance that Wilson won’t stick around after the primary election to seek another term.  That would leave it up to the Republican gubernatorial nominee to decide who he wants to run the state party. 

“However, if the party would want me to serve, I would serve in any capacity that the party would like for me.  If they would choose for me to be involved in that regard, I would almost certainly do it,” said Dredden.

Republican operative Mark Duffy took his name out of the running for Republican State Chairman today.

“I prefer to work on the frontlines of the campaign, and I have no desire for an elected position in the party,” said Duffy, 34, who managed former Rep. Dick Zimmer’s U.S. Senate run against incumbent Frank Lautenberg (D-Cliffside Park). 

Duffy’s name surfaced as a potential successor to current chair Tom Wilson, who may not seek another two year term.  But he said he hadn’t been told of the speculation. 

“It was news to me,” he said.

State Sen. Joe Pennacchio’s (R-Montville) call for Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson to resign will not likely be answered in the affirmative, but whether Wilson will serve another two-year term is uncertain.

After Wilson’s term expires in June, tradition dictates that the Republican gubernatorial nominee gets to pick the next chairman. That choice will be ratified by the 42-member Republican State Committee, which will likely accede to the nominee’s pick.

“We have a tradition in the Republican Party that the successful gubernatorial nominee is the one who gets to decide who his or her state chair will be,” said Wilson, who said he did not want to respond to Pennacchio’s press release. “I expect that not to be any different. If there’s a nominee who wants to ask me if I’m interested in staying, that will be a discussion between that nominee and I.”

However, multiple Republican sources say that Wilson has never intended to seek another term as state chairman. In fact, there was talk of him stepping down before the primary, although he said today that he will serve until at least June.

Wilson, for his part, said that his decision in June will depend on “who that nominee is and what kind of vision they have going forward.”

"I will defer completely to the nominee, and if that person wants someone different that’s what they’re entitled to. If they want me to stick around for some period of time, we’ll have a discussion about that.”

State Sen. Joe Pennacchio (R-Montville)

Citing the need for the state party to follow the national party’s lead and start renewing itself, state Sen. Joe Pennacchio (R-Montville) today called on Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson to resign.

“Soon we will have a new spokesperson leading our RNC. It is imperative that New Jersey Republicans waste no time in following suit,” he said in a press release this morning. “Our recent overwhelming losses reinforce the urgent need to change leadership and create a new direction with a purpose and direction for our party.”

Pennacchio, a dentist by trade, has been publicly critical of his party’s leadership ever since they refused to back his U.S. senate bid, instead running through a series of potential choices before settling on Goya heir Andy Unanue and ultimately former Rep. Dick Zimmer. Pennacchio has publicly seethed about the perceived slight, giving up his delegate spot at the Republican National Convention because he didn’t want to “party with the party leaders” who he felt pushed him aside. But up to this point Pennacchio has kept his criticism vague, refusing to single anyone out by name.

"One can argue that Mr. Wilson has put forth his best effort. I disagree. Regardless, it is not efforts but results that we must hold our State Chairman to,” said Pennacchio “Continued losses over his tenure and lack of a unified message of purpose and direction leads to the reasonable conclusion that immediate leadership change is warranted and necessary."