Latest news out of New Jersey today courtesy of Suffolk University’s latest poll:
A new poll conducted by Suffolk University and the USA TODAY Network regarding the upcoming election in New Jersey reveals that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy is leading against his Republican opponentKim Guadagno.
The survey's combined ballot test results show Murphy polling at 48.6 percent, while Guadagno comes in at 33 percent. Twelve percent of respondents remain undecided on their vote.
The state's current Republican governor Chris Christie pulls only a 13.8 percent approval rating while 76 percent disapprove of his time in office, according to the poll.
Click here for the full results.
By the way, Murphy has been endorsed by The New York Times:
Who should be the next governor of New Jersey? That’s not even a close call. There is only one choice on the ballot next week who guarantees voters an end to the Chris Christie era, and that’s the Democratic candidate, Phil Murphy.
Mr. Murphy, who was ambassador to Germany during the Obama years, is running against Mr. Christie’s loyal lieutenant governor, Kim Guadagno, whose agenda differs little from that of her boss. New Jersey can’t afford another four years of Christie-inspired chaos.
Indeed, Mr. Murphy would be taking on a formidable task. Eight years ago, Mr. Christie arrived promising to fix “our broken state,” as he called it. Instead, he is leaving it even more damaged than he found it.
Mr. Christie leaves behind an economy still struggling to recover a decade after the Great Recession. New Jersey’s employment growth lags well behind the rate for the country. The state’s credit rating has been downgraded 11 times in the Christie era, primarily because of the underfunded pension system. Schools, likewise, aren’t fully funded. And traffic and public transit are a daily trial, thanks in part to Mr. Christie’s shortsighted cancellation of a new rail tunnel under the Hudson. (A recent report estimated that the average driver in the state spends an unnecessary $600 a year on lost time, car repairs and wasted fuel.)
Let’s make sure the base gets out and votes and win this race. Click here to donate and get involved with Murphy’s campaign.