For Corzine in Hudson, it may be Bob Menendez to the rescue

There is a growing consensus among Democrats that Gov. Jon Corzine needs U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-Hoboken) to put Hudson County together for him.  Hudson is Menendez's base: he was Mayor of Union City, Assemblyman, State Senator, Congressman and Hudson County Democratic Chairman before leaving local politics to take a seat in the Senate.  There is speculation that Menendez will show up at a tomorrow's weekly meeting of the Hudson County Democratic Organization to talk to the mayors - with whom political power rests in Hudson - about Corzine's re-election campaign.

Some Democrats fear that Hudson County Democrats might be too weakened by recent events to replicate the 61,640 vote margin they delivered in for Corzine in 2005. There is chaos in Hoboken and Secaucus, where mayors have resigned following their arrests on federal corruption charges last month. The new Hoboken Mayor, Dawn Zimmer, is less than enthralled with the governor, her constituent; Secaucus Democrats have no candidate for Mayor and the local organization is backing an independent candidate who had been challenging Dennis Elwell. In Bayonne, some supporters of former Mayor Joseph Doria are unhappy because Corzine asked Doria to resign his cabinet post just hours after the FBI raided his home and office; ironically, Corzine is taking heat for throwing Doria under the bus and the beneficiary of that could be Christie, the bus driver.

Jersey City, which gave Corzine a 25,694 vote margin four years ago, is a complete mess. Mayor Jerramiah Healy, never Corzine's biggest fan to begin with, is dealing with the effects of the federal corruption probe that nabbed the City Council President, the Deputy Mayor, a bunch of local officials, and the late Jack Shaw.. Joseph Cardwell, also arrested last month, is one of the people Democrats count on to turn out votes; he'll be on the sidelines this fall. 

In Union City, Democratic State Sen./Mayor Brian Stack has not yet endorsed Corzine; there are signs that he would not mind a win by Christopher Christie. For Corzine, the loss of Stack's support - or the involvement of his political organization -- could mean 5,000 votes. The governor is depending on big pluralities out of Hudson to win.