Lautenberg Gets Incumbent Nod in New Jersey Senate Primary

By Rachel Kapochunas, CQ Staff Wed Jun 4, 2:09 AM ET

Four-term Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg flexed his political muscles once again in New Jersey's Democratic primary Tuesday, easily deflecting a challenge from longtime U.S. Rep. Robert E. Andrews -- and rebuffing the contention by supporters of the 50-year-old Andrews that the 84-year-old incumbent should step aside to make way for new leadership.

Lautenberg, an outspoken advocate of Democratic Party policy positions over his lengthy Senate career, had 59 percent of the vote with nearly all precincts reporting. Andrews, the representative of southern New Jersey's 1st District since 1990, had 35 percent. Longshot candidate Donald Cresitello, the mayor of Monmouth, received the remaining 6 percent.

The comfortable victory margin cemented Lautenberg's position as the solid favorite for the general election in a state that has been trending strongly Democratic in recent election years and that has not elected a Republican to the Senate since 1972.

His Republican opponent, former Rep. Dick Zimmer, is a familiar figure on the New Jersey political scene. But after winning three House terms in the 12th District beginning in 1990, he lost a combative Senate race to Democrat Robert G. Torricelli in 1996 and then narrowly lost a House comeback bid against his successor, Democrat Rush D. Holt, in 2000.

Zimmer, a lawyer and lobbyist, had not planned to run for the Senate this year, but ended up doing so at the request of state Republican officials who had a series of candidate recruiting snafus. He only began his campaign in April, and his primary lead of 46 percent to 40 percent over state Sen. Joseph Pennacchio was not overwhelming. Educator Murray Sabrin, who promoted a libertarian agenda, rounded out the field with 14 percent.

CQ Politics rates the general election contest as Democrat Favored.

The disparity in turnout for the parties' primaries in New Jersey was marked. There were about 334,000 votes recorded in the Democratic primary with most precincts reporting to 182,000 in the Republican contest. This was despite the fact that the Republicans staged the primary's two most competitive House nominating contests, for the seats left open by retiring Republican incumbents H. James Saxton in the 3rd District and Mike Ferguson in the 7th District.

Democratic turnout has been high this election season across the country. But the Democratic Senate primary in New Jersey drew special attention from party insiders and other Lautenberg supporters who felt the veteran senator deserves re-election, and from voters in Andrews' South Jersey base, the source of by far his strongest showings in Tuesday's vote.

Andrews did run up big numbers in the two counties that make up most of his congressional district, Camden and Gloucester, which are in the part of the state in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. But Lautenberg was dominant in the more populous northern part of the state, located in the sphere of New York City, with huge leads in the counties of Essex (Newark), Hudson (Jersey City) and Bergen with its largely affluent suburban population.

Lautenberg is actually in his second Senate tenure. After winning elections in 1982, 1988 and 1994, he decided not to seek re-election in 2000. But he came out of his brief retirement in 2002 -- and likely rescued his party from a stunning defeat -- after ethics controversies prompted Torricelli to abandon his re-election campaign. Lautenberg, with his statewide name identification and personal wealth as a successful businessman, jumped into the race five weeks before the election and won the seat with ease.

Andrews argued that Lautenberg held a "sense of entitlement" and wanted a "free pass" for re-election. Lautenberg countered by trying to tie Andrews to President Bush and other Republicans -- particular on Andrews' support of the 2002 resolution authorizing the U.S. military intervention in Iraq, which Lautenberg, a strong and consistent foe of the war, claimed was "co-authored" by Andrews.

Andrews has long been known to harbor ambitions for statewide office, and he lost a 1997 Democratic primary for governor. But he initially pledged support for Lautenberg's re-election, and his announcement just days before the April 7 filing deadline that he would stage a Senate primary challenge shocked the state's political establishment. He also left himself with just a brief time -- roughly two months -- to make his case to Democratic voters statewide.

Lautenberg's win leaves Andrews with an unclear political future -- though with a possible short turnaround option. Andrews' wife, lawyer Camille Andrews, won the Democratic primary Tuesday to succeed him in the 1st District seat, but she has stated she is willing to step aside to allow the district's county Democratic committee members to select a replacement. State law allows a candidate to renounce a nomination and be replaced by party officials up to 51 days before the general election.

Some Democrats believe the congressman will implore officials to put him back on the ballot for the House, now that his Senate bid has fallen flat. But Andrews has repeatedly stated he will not re-enter the 1st District race.

Democratic state Rep. Louis Greenwald and state Senate Democratic Leader Steve Sweeney are often mentioned in Democratic circles as top picks to replace Andrews, but officials publicly doubt their willingness to give up their legislative positions.

The Democratic nominee will be heavily favored in the Democratic-dominated 1st. Republican Dale Glading, a minister, won his party's nomination Tuesday for a fall contest rated by CQ Politics as Safe Democratic.

The contest for the two open Republican-held House seats in New Jersey are, however, expected to be highly competitive.

In the 7th District, the Democrats will again put forth state Rep. Linda Stender, who lost to Republican incumbent Ferguson by just 1 percentage point in 2006. Stender will face Republican state Sen. Leonard Lance, who easily outran six other Republicans

Lance received 40 percent of the vote, besting six GOP competitors -- including public relations consultant Kate Whitman, the daughter of former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, who had 20 percent, and former Summit County Freeholder P. Kelly Hatfield, who received 15 percent.

Whitman has no experience in elected office, but her family name carried weight in the race. Whitman campaigned as the political outsider and criticized Lance's legislative record on fiscal matters and other issues. But both candidates had pledged before Tuesday's vote to support the primary winner.

CQ Politics currently rates the 7th District race as No Clear Favorite.

Like Stender, 3rd District nominee John H. Adler, a state senator, was unopposed in the Democratic primary. He will take on Medford Township Mayor Chris Myers, who won a contested three-way Republican primary race by a comfortable plurality.

Many local Republicans expected their primary to be a two-man race between Myers and Ocean County Freeholder John P. "Jack" Kelly, with the outcome hinging on which candidate produced the stronger turnout in his regional base. The district's current representative, Republican H. James Saxton, endorsed fellow Burlington County resident Myers soon after the incumbent, first elected in 1984, announced his decision to retire due to health concerns. Republican Rep. Christopher H. Smith, of the neighboring 4th District, represents a portion of Ocean County and threw his support behind Kelly.

But Myers clearly got the better of the calculation, piling up 74 percent in Burlington County while Kelly amassed just 44 percent in Ocean County. As a result, Myers ran well ahead with 49 percent of the overall vote, while Kelly took 26 percent, just slightly more than the 25 percent taken by dark-horse candidate Justin Michael Murphy, an energy and utility consultant.

Saxton's retirement has prompted Democratic strategists to target the 3rd, where President Bush prevailed in 2004 by just 3 percentage points. Saxton's typically stronger showings -- he received 58 percent of the vote there in 2006 -- are in part because he cultivated support in the competitive district by maintaining an image as a centrist, particularly on environmental issues.

CQ Politics rates the 3rd District race in its highly competitive Leans Republican category.

Democrats, hoping to stage a strong longshot challenge to Republican Rep. Scott Garrett in the 5th District, nominated Dennis Shulman, a rabbi and psychologist, over two primary competitors.

Shulman, who is seeking to become the first blind congressman in generations, received 61 percent of the vote against lawyer Camille M. Abate, who unsuccessfully competed for the Democratic nomination to take on Garrett in 2006. Abate received 32 percent, while technician Roger Bacon rounded out the field with 7 percent.

Though the northern New Jersey 5th District leans Republicans, Democrats portray Garrett as a conservative hardliner who doesn't fit his constituency. But Garrett, who was unopposed in Tuesday's primary, has fended off previous such portrayals, and won a third term in 2006 with 55 percent of the vote and an 11 percentage-point margin.