By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker and two Democrats from Somerset County picked up a key endorsement last week to run for the state Legislature in the 16th district race, a four-county region that some still view as Republican territory., Zwicker, assembly candidate Roy Freiman and state senate candidate Zenon Christodoulou got the backing of the Middlesex County Democratic convention. Middlesex is a part of the district along with Mercer, Hunterdon and Somerset counties., But Zwicker, when contacted Friday by email about his running mates, alluded to some kind of “change.” He could not be reached for further comment to elaborate., The filing deadline to run for the Legislature is April 3., Republican state Sen. Kip Bateman and former Assemblywoman Donna Simon and Somerset County Freeholder Mark Caliguire already announced they were running as a slate., “The Bateman, Simon and Caliguire team will advocate on behalf of frustrated taxpayers and promote bold ideas to solve the economic and fiscal crises gripping our state,” said campaign Chris Russell Friday., The race is a rematch of sorts, with Simon on the comeback trail after losing her seat to Zwicker in a close race in 2015., Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert on Friday called the contest “an important race” in what she calls a swing legislative district that her community is a part of., “I think Andrew’s shown that Democrats can win,” she said. “I think it can go in any direction this time around.”
