Republican candidate may bolt N.J. Senate race

Republican Andy Unanue told advisers last night he's thinking of pulling out of the U.S. Senate primary race.

Unanue, a scion of the Goya Foods empire who could bring millions to his campaign, got into the race last month.

Almost immediately, critics from both the Democratic and Republican parties pointed out he really lives in New York, has pleaded guilty to driving drunk, and was spending Easter in Vail, Colo., rather than hustling to New Jersey to start a campaign.

Unanue, 40, is expected to announce sometime today or later this week that he is either in the race for the long haul or getting out.

Also in the Republican primary are Murray Sabrin, a Ramapo College professor, and state Sen. Joseph Pennacchio, a Morris County dentist. But the cash-strapped GOP's leaders have been scouring their A- lists, hoping to convince a self-funding millionaire to defy history and become the first Republican to win a New Jersey Senate seat since 1972.

Among those popping up are former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, now of counsel to the firm of Gibson Dunn and Crutcher. He did not immediately return a call for comment.

Unanue's grandparents, immigrants from Spain, founded Goya Foods Inc., based in Secaucus, N.J. It is now the nation's largest Hispanic-owned food company. Unanue served as Goya's chief operating officer for four years until he and his father, Joseph, were ousted from the privately held company in 2004 in a family disagreement. Andy Unanue said the family has reconciled.

He now runs AU and Associates, a management and financial consulting firm based in New York.