John Amodeo

It is possible that the only real contests in the 2009 State Assembly races will be the four seats in the first and second districts, where three freshmen who won competitive ’07 races will presumably be seeking re-election.

In District 1, Nelson Albano, re-elected to a second term last month, and freshman Matthew Milam, will compete in this politically competitive district without the benefit of newly-elected State Senator Jeff Van Drew at the top of the ticket.  If Nicholas Asselta, who lost his Senate seat to Van Drew, would be an extremely formidable candidate if he seeks a comeback as an Assembly candidate in 2009 – and could help bring in a second Republican.

Michael K. Maloney, president of the Mercer County Labor Union council, gave the troops their marching orders in the Colonial Firehouse in Hamilton on Election Day.

"Do not come back till after six o'clock," he told the 300 union workers representing 22 locals who packed the tables in the hall and prepared to hit the streets to canvass for labor candidates here.
 
A few minutes later Maloney introduced Charlie Wowkanech, president of the state AFL-CIO, who jumped up onto the makeshift stage next to Maloney and stood above the workers.

A Zogby poll conducted for the Press of Atlantic City and Richard Stockton State College shows Democrat James Whelan leading GOP State Sen. Sonny McCullough by a 50%-37% margin, and the race between Republican State Sen. Nicholas Asselta and Democrat Jeff Van Drew to be a statistical dead heat.

Van Drew, a three-term Assemblyman, leads Asselta by a 45%-42% margin. The poll has a margin of error of +/- 5%.

Gov. Jon Corzine campaigns in Atlantic City for Team Whelan on Sunday.

The Absecon Channel separates Brigantine from Atlantic City in this world of salt water and low-slung housing broken up by tragicomic human silos with names like Taj and Showboat.

But it’s all the same battlefield here in the 2nd district, where forces are mobilizing for Sen. (and Egg Harbor Township Mayor) James "Sonny" McCullough or Assemblyman James Whelan.

In Atlantic City, a second tall and bearded politician joins Team Whelan today in a senior citizens complex on Atlantic Avenue. It’s Gov. Jon Corzine, who knows seniors are a critical voting block, particularly in an off-election year like this, and he’s working the older crowd overtime with his best up-close-and-personal demeanor.

Driving in the rain in Atlantic County, Democratic Assemblyman Jim Whelan says he knows it’s going to be close on Election Day when all these long months of arguing and talking and walking and pounding and fund-raising and driving come to a head in his challenge of GOP Sen. James "Sonny" McCullough.

"A win by one point is still a win," says Whelan. "Boston won the first game of the World Series the other night, 13-1. They won the second game, 2-1. The result of the second game is still the same as the first. They won."

Whelan has the strong arm reliever coming into the game in the form of Senate President Richard Codey, who’s got an $800,000 fast ball, and on Sunday, Gov. Jon Corzine will campaign with Whelan.

A Republican poll has Jim Whelan and Sonny McCullough in a dead heatAn internal campaign poll obtained by PoliticsNJ.com shows the second district state Senate race in a statistical dead heat, with Republicans leading in the contest for two Assembly seats.

The poll, which was conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, shows 41.7% of voters either voting for Democrat Jim Whelan or leaning towards him, while 41.3% picked Republican James “Sonny” McCullough.

In the Assembly contest, with respondents picking a combination of their first and second choices, Republican John Amodeo has a commanding lead over the pack, with 36%. The next preference was for Vince Polistana, with 28.7%, followed by Joe Wilkins with 27% and Blondell Spellman with 26.3%.

The District 2 Democratic Assembly candidates today challenged their Republican opponents to a minimum of five debates before Election Day.

Joe Wilkins and Blondell Spellman proposed 45 minute, one-on-one debates in front of an audience of voters, with questions posed by moderators, the audience, and the candidates themselves. They said the forums must be hosted by a non-biased, independent organization or media outlet, suggesting as possibilities the Press of Atlantic City, the League of Women Voters, Richard Stockton State College, New Jersey Network, or Pinky's Corner.

State Senator James “Sonny” McCullough and his Assembly running mates Vince Polistina and John Amodeo endorsed Rudy Giuliani for President today.

Giuliani was in the area to campaign for the first district Republican legislative candidates, but stopped by the Ram's Head Inn in Galloway Township to campaign for McCullough's slate.

The Democrats in District 2 beefed up their union cred today with the addition of labor leader Joe Wilkins, a move that can’t help but have nose-to-nose implications when considering that one of the men lining up on the other side of the grid is a rank-and-file crane operator turned lead engineer, former Linwood City Councilman John Amodeo.

A man who began his union career in 1956 as an apprentice with the plumbers and steamfitters local 121, Wilkins of Galloway Township joined the ticket as a replacement candidate today in a packed room at party headquarters in Linwood and vowed to help make life here more affordable for working families - which is just what Amodeo says he wants to do, incidentally.

Atlantic County Republicans didn't waste any time going after their brand new Assembly opponent on monetization, but the new candidate had already fielded a question on the issue in his kick-off press conference.

"I am opposed to any leasing of toll roads," Democratic Assembly candidate Joe Wilkins said emphatically.