Kate, Christie stump for election day votes

Congressional candidate Kate Whitman is joined by her mother, former Gov. Christie Whitman, at a dinner in Scotch Plains
SCOTCH PLAINS - A familiar face joined 7th District Congressional candidate Kate Whitman as she trailed through diners along US-22 today, her mother former Gov. Christie Whitman.

"I thought I was done with this," the former governor said jokingly. Her public presence, only the second time in this campaign, lent a familiar face to voters who seemed to be caught off guard that today was Primary Day.

"I didn't even know she was running for anything," Cindy Soloway of Scotch Plains told PolitickerNJ.com, "What is she running for?"

When one diner asked Whitman who else was running, Whitman raised her right hand and swiftly rattled off the names of her 6 opponents, "Its me, Leonard Lance, Kelly Hatfield…" she continued, counting her finger tips.

"I usually tell people that the two front runners are Leonard and myself," Whitman says, referring to her strongest adversary, state Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon).

Through sighs concerning low voter turnout and interest, which Whitman's husband Craig described as a "slow trickle," the candidate is looking to her energy to set her apart from the crowded primary field.

"When we were out dropping literature and canvassing this past weekend, we didn't see any other campaign." says Whitman, "Nobody has worked harder than we have."

Still, Whitman sees her challenge to Lance as cordial. "This isn't District 3," she says, "I've known Leonard for a long time and I've told him that if I don't win tonight I would come out and work for him."

Asked about the personal affect of running against a friend, and in the case of the former governor, a colleague, the mother-daughter duo responded in sync, "it's a campaign."

For a 7th district ballot weighted by the names in the Republican column, Whitman is optimistic going into the campaign's remaining hours. "It has been tough, but I think I'm going to win."

PolitickerNJ.com's Megan Buerger and Koeun Lee contributed to this report.