State Sen. Dana Redd (D-Camden) and U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1) 

CHERRY HILL - Entering to the strains of John Mellencamp’s "Small Town," U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1) returned from Trenton to his native Camden County on the day he launched his longshot U.S. Senate bid.

From the podium in party headquarters, Andrews picked faces out of the crowd and reminisced briefly about past battles even as he steeled his fellow South Jersey Democrats for a tough primary campaign against U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

Earlier this week, Assemblyman Paul Moriarty announced that he wouldn’t stand for reelection for his other elected office: mayor of Washington Township (the one in Gloucester County).

The announcement came less than a week after Moriarty’s name surfaced as a potential replacement for first district Rep. Rob Andrews, who’s vacating the seat to take on incumbent Senator Frank Lautenberg in the June primary.

George Norcross, one of New Jersey's most powerful Democratic insiders, has endorsed Barack ObamaBarack Obama today picked up the support of two super delegates from New Jersey as several major Democratic leaders in South Jersey announced that they would switch their endorsements from Hillary Clinton to Obama. Super delegates Donald Norcross, who had previously been uncommitted, and State Sen. Dana Redd, who had backed Clinton, are now for Obama. This is a net pickup of two super delegates for Obama and a loss of one for Clinton.

Obama also won the backing of one of the state’s most powerful political insiders, George Norcross, and was endorsed by Clinton backers, including Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney, Democratic County Chairmen James Beach (Camden), Rick Perr (Burlington) and Michael Angelini (Gloucester), Camden Mayor Gwendolyn Faison, State Sen. Frederick Madden, and Assemblyman Paul Moriarty

Bill Clinton, joined by Gov. Jon Corzine, campaigned in Camden today: Getty Images Photo

After receiving criticism for his role in his wife's presidential campaign in New Hampshire and South Carolina, former President Bill Clinton stuck to a lawyerly script in Blackwood today, exactly one week before New Jersey's Feb. 5 primary.

"You must vote for someone not just to make history, but for someone who's going to build the future," said Clinton, in the one unnamed reference to Sen. Hillary Clintons chief opponent, Sen. Barack Obama.

In his second New Jersey appearance for his wife's campaign in as many months, Clinton told a crowd of 1,500 in Camden Community College's Papiano Gym that the most important reason to elect his wife as the Democratic presidential nominee is because she is a "proven change agent."

State Sen. Ray Lesniak was the kingmaker in the race for Senate Majority LeaderThe surging south got a seat at the table today, with third district state Sen. Stephen Sweeney chosen as majority leader after a hard fought, emotional battle with state Sen. Paul Sarlo.

Although the decision-making process was closed and the official decision was unanimous, sources say that Sweeney had the support of 14 of the 23 member caucus. Backing Sweeney were the expected south Jersey contingent -- Jeff Van Drew, Jim Whelan, Fred Madden, Dana Redd and John Adler. But he also had support from Senators from the rest of the state -- Brian Stack, Sandra Bolden Cunningham, Barbara Buono, Nicholas Scutari, Bob Smith, Ray Lesniak, Joe Vitale and Loretta Weinberg.

The Courier-Post endorsed one Assembly candidate -- Republican Jonathan Mangel -- in the heavily Democratic 5th district, and pointedly refused to endorse Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts, State Senate candidate Dana Redd, and Assemblywoman Nilsa Cruz-Perez.  They said the other GOP and independent candidates were not worthy of endorsement.  READ

Democratic State Senate candidate Dana Redd has won the endorsement of a Republican Mayor in her district.  “I’ve been following Dana Redd’s career for a long time, so when she announced her bid for Senate I was impressed that she sought my advice, face-to-face, on local issues in Audubon and her agenda for reform in Trenton," said Audubon Mayor Anthony Pugliese, the Mayor since 2001 and a former Republican State Committeeman from Camden County.