Political landscapes shifting
To the editor:
Political landscapes have begun to shift in New Jersey, with the special election for the late Senator Frank Lautenberg’s seat shaping up on the Democratic side. With well-known names and faces entering the race, things seem to be heating for the August primary. While Cory Booker, who expressed his intention to run for the seat in January, still remains in the lead, the entrance of powerful names such as congressmen Rush Holt and Frank Pallone have created some ripples.
A recent poll by Quinnipiac University polled Democratic New Jersey voters for the special election primary, 53 percent supported Cory Booker while Rush Holt was a distant second at 10 percent. Frank Pallone polled at 9 percent, with 27 percent of voters still undecided. This poses a problem for the Central Jersey representatives, who have to overcome a huge margin to even be competitive with the famous Newark mayor. Moreover, with two representatives running from the same part of New Jersey, their votes are divided, giving Mayor Booker an advantage.
The Republicans, on the other hand, don’t have any high-profile names entering, with the only major Republican to run in the primary being Steve Lonegan. The current appointee by Governor Christie, Jeffery Chiesa, declined to run for the seat in October.
Mayor Cory Booker seems to the favorite to win both the Democratic primary and the election. The mayor, who has successfully won two terms to be the mayor of Newark, would be a suitable successor to the late Senator.
Senator Lautenberg was a self-made man who decided to dedicate his life to public service after working in the private sector for many years. An honest and faithful servant of the American citizens, Senator Lautenberg embodied the few in Washington untainted by scandal.
Mayor Booker, in many ways, is the same man. Dedicated to public service since his 1998 election to the Newark City Council, Mayor Booker has made changes in Newark, creating low-income projects and reducing crime rates in the city. An honest and capable leader, Mayor Booker would make an excellent junior New Jersey senator in Washington, D.C.
Aman Thakker
Hillsborough