Mike Ferguson

GREEN BROOK -- The idea has dogged State Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Flemington) since he started his congressional campaign in the 7th District: that he's well respected as a policy wonk, but doesn't have the political wherewithal to run a federal race in a fiercely competitive district.

Lance's critics found evidence of that claim when they saw that he had only $80,000 cash on hand at the end of the last reporting period to rival Linda Stender's (D-Fanwood) $1.2 million.

Today, Lance acknowledged that some of his supporters were taken aback by the anemic war chest, but noted that he's raised a lot of money since the June 30th filing deadline - which occurred just 26 days after Lance blew his war chest against a well-funded primary campaign by Kate Whitman and five other candidates.

Lance said that he doesn't know how much he's raised since then, but that he's certain it's "more than $100,000."  He also has six fundraisers scheduled over the coming months, and will stay home to campaign and raise money during the Republican National Convention in September.

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Politicker.com Managing Editor James Pindell has launched The Pindell Report, ranks and analyzes all U.S. Senate races and governors races, the top 59 U.S. House races, and 19 presidential swing states – with updates the moment news breaks. The report heavily leans on the basis of two dozen reporters in fifteen key states where Politicker.com currently has locally devoted political news websites. In New Jersey, Pindell says the U.S. Senate race is Likely Democratic, as is the race for Republican Jim Saxton’s open House seat in District 3. Pindell says the contest to replace Republican Mike Ferguson in District 7 is Leans Democratic.

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Four Democratic Assembly seats not expected to be in play in 2007 turned out to be especially close, including Linda Stender, who won re-election in 2007 about the same number of votes Mike Ferguson did in his congressional race against her 2006 bid.

Stender defeated Republican Robert Gatto, who spent about $100 and mounted no real campaign, by just 3,327 votes in the 22nd district.  Her running mate, Gerald Green, defeated Bryan Des Roschers by just 3,260 votes.  Gatto and Des Roschers have both lost bids for municipal office.

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WASHINGTON -- Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Union) will be one of the candidates attending a Wednesday evening fundraiser for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s top “Red to Blue” recruits.

A Stender spokesperson did not provide further details about the event, but a separate Democratic source said that public interest groups, political action committees, and labor and business groups were expected to be in attendance at the fundraiser. The event is set to take place at the Democratic National Committee’s Washington headquarters.

The fundraiser is being bundled with a Thursday DCCC-sponsored training session for House challengers focusing on messaging and rapid response which party leaders and top committee aides are expected to attend. The DCCC held similar sessions in February and May. Stender’s campaign would not say if they would be attending Thursday’s training session.

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The two New Jersey House seats most clearly in play next year are the two that have been held by the Republicans for the longest period of time: Democrats have not won the seat now held by Jim Saxton for 126 years, and Mike Ferguson’s district has not elected a Democrat since 1954.

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FLEMINGTON -- Facing a string of recent U.S. House special election wins for Democrats in Illinois, Louisiana and Mississippi and uncomfortable reminders of nearly losing New Jersey's 7th Congressional District in 2006, Republicans gathered at state Sen. Leonard Lance's primary election night victory party on Tuesday said they were confident that the GOP would be able to hold on to the seat of retiring Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson in November.

"Demographics are destiny," state Assemblyman Michael Doherty (R-Washington) told PolitickerNJ.com at the American Legion hall in Flemington, in the heart of Lance's Hunterdon County base. Doherty said Democrat Linda Stender would have a difficult job capturing the reliably Republican congressional district, despite Stender's near defeat of Ferguson two years ago. The 7th district "was really drawn as a Republican district."

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Sherron Rolax, the African American teenager who had his picture in newspapers and on television stations throughout the country after being frisked by the Governor of New Jersey during a midnight police raid in Camden in 1996, was killed in a fight in Camden early Saturday morning. The frisking became an issue in late 2000 when Christine Todd Whitman was named U.S. Enviromental Protection Agency Director. Eight years ago, PoliticsNJ.com named Rolax to the Andy Warhol List of New Jerseyans who had enjoyed their 15 minutes of fame during the 2000 camaign cycle.

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State Sen. Leonard Lance is the front-runner in his bid for the GOP nomination for Congress in the 7th district
Leonard Lance doesn’t like to use the F-word, but some pundits say it applies to him in his bid for the Republican nomination for Congress in New Jersey’s 7th district.

“I never use the word ‘frontrunner’,” said Lance, a veteran State Senator from Hunterdon County. “I think it’s a dangerous word, and I campaign as vigorously as I can.”

While Kate Whitman, the daughter of former Gov.Christine Todd Whitman, has raised the most money in the race to succeed retiring Rep. Mike Ferguson, Lance appears to have raised enough to assuage doubts about his fundraising prowess. And he has secured the organization lines in two counties where 67% of Republican primary voters live.

As of the end of last month, Lance had raised $294,130 – which includes a $100,000 personal loan -- and has $255,654 on hand for the primary. Whitman has taken in $444,433 and has $307,260 on hand, although about $50,000 of that is from maxed out donations and must be set aside for the general election.

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DISTRICT 1

Ten-term incumbent Rob Andrews is seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate.

Democrat: Camille Andrews, the wife of Rep. Rob Andrews, is seeking the seat her husband for eighteen years until deciding to challenge incumbent Frank Lautenberg in the Democratic U.S. Senate primary. She faces two primary opponents: Mahdi Ibn-Ziyardm, a social studies teacher and Camden Democratic Committeeman; and John Caramanna, who ran for the State Assembly in 2007 but withdrew from the Democratic primary. Bishop David G. Evans, a major religious and civic leader in Camden and a member of the Democratic National Convention Credentials Committee, dropped out of the race last week. Safe Andrews

Republicans: Rev. Dale Glading, who runs a prison ministry, is the GOP organization candidate. He races a primary challenge from Gulf War veteran Fernando Powers, a supporter of Ron Paul and Murray Sabrin. Safe Glading

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Take a look at Mike Ferguson's most recent campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission.  Ferguson announced in November 2007 that he would not seek re-election to a fifth term.

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