James Plousis

The buzz among Republican insiders over the last two days is that party leaders seem genuinely excited by the prospects of millionaire businessman Andy Unanue entering the race for United States Senator.  The former Chief Operating Officer of Goya Foods, one of the largest Hispanic-owned businesses in the United States, makes an interesting candidate: a self-funder who his 44 years younger than the incumbent and can compete for Latino votes.

With just twenty days to go before the April 7 filing deadline, a group of New Jersey Republican leaders are actively searching for another United States Senate candidate to challenge State Sen. Joseph Pennacchio and Ramapo College Professor Murray Sabrin in the June GOP primary.  The race changed considerably two weeks ago when millionaire Anne Evans Estabrook abruptly quit the Senate race after suffering a minor stroke, and with the public disclosure yesterday of Pennacchio’s 1991 nationalist manifesto that has some party leaders in a panic.

Sources say that several GOP leaders approached State Sen. Diane Allen to run; Allen has been recovering from pneumonia and has reportedly declined. 

U.S. Marshal James Plousis has decided against seeking the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, becoming the third candidate promoted by party leaders to decline since Anne Evans Estabrook left the race last week.  Plousis, a former Cape May County Sheriff, told County Chairmen yesterday that he wants to continue as the federal marshal.

State Sen. Joseph Pennacchio continues to look like the front runner for the Republican nomination to oppose four-term incumbent Frank Lautenberg this fall.  Former New Jersey Highway Authority Chairman Joseph Buckalew says he’s not running for United States Senate, and GOP insiders report that State Sen. Joseph Kyrillos is not likely to enter the race.  State Sen. Christopher Bateman continues to give serious consideration to a U.S. Senate bid, though some party leaders seem concerned about a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against former Gov. Donald DiFrancesco and his law firm, where Bateman is a partner.  Several Republican leaders are pushing U.S. Marshal James Plousis to run, but there is no evidence that the former Cape May County Sheriff is interested.

U.S. Senate candidate Joseph Pennacchio has been endorsed by four key Atlantic County GOP leaders: Assemblymen John Amodeo and Vince Polistina; former State Sen. Sonny McCullough, the Mayor of Egg Harbor Township; and Folsom Mayor Thomas Ballistreri. 

Add another name to the growing list of potential new candidates for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination: James Plousis, the former Cape May County Sheriff and the current United States Marshal for New Jersey. “Jim Plousis has the integrity, leadership skills, and fiscally conservative views to represent the Garden State as a U.S. Senator,” said David Von Savage, the Cape May County GOP Chairman.