A new Fairleigh Dickinson poll in New Jersey finds that Gov. Jon Corzine (D) is in serious danger of defeat at the hands of former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie in the election this coming November.
The numbers: Christie 41%, Corzine 32%. New Jersey is a heavily Democratic state, but Corzine has been hurt by the state’s budget situation. And Christie retains popularity from his years as a U.S. Attorney, when he successfully prosecuted politicians from both parties. On the other hand, he has had his share of controversies involving the Bush Administration, and Corzine is sure to use those against him.
My own two cents, as a New Jerseyan: As a rule, we hate our politicians. But Christie can’t bask in the glory of the polls right now, because it’s also very common for incumbent Democrats to be way below 50%, and still win at the end of the day in this blue state.
New Jersey has shown a classic pattern of having high undecideds and the Republican ahead, only to see the undecided voters eventually come home and (reluctantly) vote for the Democrat. This is exactly what happened in the the 2006 Senate race, for example. But we’ll see how this plays out, especially when the Dems start attacking Christie as a Bush-crony.
