Going into Election Day, a dead heat for N.J. governor

New Jersey residents will choose a governor today following months of hard campaigning and negative advertising that have left the major-party candidates - Democratic Gov. Corzine and Republican Christopher J. Christie - in a dead heat.

An estimated 2.5 million voters are expected to go to the polls at the end of a race that both parties portrayed as a referendum on the popularity of President Obama, who visited the state three times to appear with Corzine.

Residents also will vote in a range of other races, choosing Assembly members, county freeholders, and municipal leaders. But most eyes have been on the governor's race, and new polls yesterday showed it was still up for grabs.

"Some people say they're seeing momentum," said Monmouth University polling director Patrick Murray. "Momentum indicates something is going in a direction. This is going everywhere. It's just wacky."

Corzine, Christie, and independent gubernatorial candidate Chris Daggett spent yesterday traversing the state, spending most of their time in vote-rich North Jersey. Christie popped by Burlington County's GOP headquarters in Mount Holly to pep up the troops; Corzine went to a union rally in Lawrenceville.

For the first time, voters will elect a lieutenant governor, whose primary responsibility is to serve when the governor cannot.

Another first in this race is the widespread use of mail ballots. So far, 184,000 people have applied to vote by mail and 123,550 had returned ballots as of yesterday. That compares with 91,726 absentee ballots cast in the 2005 governor's race. The mailed-in ballots are to be counted today, according to Susan Evans, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State's Office.

Daggett, who hit 20 percent of the vote in a mid-October Rutgers University poll, has been a significant factor in the race. But three polls released yesterday showed he was losing points, a trend that began last week.

The Quinnipiac University poll of 1,533 likely voters put Christie at 42 percent and Corzine at 40 percent, with Daggett getting 12 percent. The poll taken between Oct. 27 and Nov. 1 had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

The Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey Poll released yesterday had Corzine at 43 percent and Christie at 41 percent, with Daggett at 8 percent. The poll of 722 likely voters conducted between Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind poll of 1,119 likely voters between Oct. 22 and Nov. 1 showed Corzine at 43 percent, against 41 percent for Christie and 8 percent for Daggett. The margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The highest recent performance of an independent candidate came in 1997, when Murray Sabrin captured 4.7 percent of the vote in a race with Republican Gov. Christie Whitman and James E. McGreevey, who lost that race and went on to win in 2001.

Whitman's win was the last statewide election victory by a Republican. Of the state's 5.2 million voters, 1.8 million are Democrats, 1 million are Republicans, and 2.4 million are unaffiliated. The rest belong to smaller parties.

Corzine, 62, a Wall Street millionaire, is on track to spend about $30 million in this race. Christie and Daggett accepted state campaign subsidies, which limit spending.

Christie, 47, a former U.S. attorney, has had help from the Republican Governors Association, which spent about $4 million in advertising. The Democratic Governor's Association spent about $3.2 million for Corzine on get-out-the-vote operations.

Daggett, 59, a former environmental commissioner, has argued that neither major-party candidate will solve the state's structural budget problems.

There has been national scrutiny of the New Jersey race because Virginia is the only other state to have a governor's race this year. Former state Attorney General Bob McDonnell, a Republican, is leading Democrat Creigh Deeds, a state senator, in independent polls there.

Locally, there is a spirited contest in Cape May and Cumberland Counties for the Assembly. Also, Democratic Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts of Camden is retiring, and county party leaders replaced him on the ballot with Donald Norcross, a party cochair and brother of power broker George Norcross III.

Voters in Camden will elect a mayor, with State Sen. Dana Redd, the Democratic machine pick, running against a field of lesser-known candidates. If Redd wins, the party plans to give her Senate seat to Donald Norcross.

Control of Gloucester Township's top post is up, with Republican Mayor Cindy Rau-Hatton fighting a strong challenge from former Democratic Assemblyman Dave Mayer.

Freeholders are up for election in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester Counties.

Statewide, voters also are set to decide on whether to let the state issue $400 million in bonds to acquire open space.

In case of a voting problem, help and information is available from county boards of elections:

Burlington County: 609-265-5111.

Camden County: 856-661-3555.

Gloucester County: 856-384-4500.

To verify registration, find a polling place or for general information, go to www.state.nj.us/state/elections/ or call 877-658-6837.

Voters who experience problems at the polls may request help from the Office of the Public Advocate at 609-826-5090.

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