If Corzine wins today, he will have to name a replacement to his vacant Senate seat. Given that the popular Tom Kean, Jr will be running for the GOP next year, Corzine's choice takes added importance.
This column is a great look at all the machinations.
What makes Democrats energized and fearful is the looming Senate candidacy of a Republican with a magical name in New Jersey - Tom Kean Jr.
The 37-year-old state senator from Westfield and son of the former governor and 9/11 commission chairman has already told party activists he plans to run for the U.S. Senate in 2006. Secret polling by Democrats indicates that Kean would easily beat every Democratic candidate, except one - Dick Codey.
The other source of Democratic nervousness is Rep. Robert Menendez, the powerful, ambitious Hudson Democrat.
Menendez, the third-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives, has long dreamed of becoming a U.S. senator. But Democrats worry he has too much baggage, notably a former girlfriend who reportedly obtained lucrative contracts as a lobbyist.
The fear here is that Kean would be seen as a clean candidate, with Menendez as too closely tied to the state's pay-to-play corruption racket.
"He's out," a strategist said of Menendez. "The pressure on him to not run will increase."
Menendez said in an interview he plans to fight for the Senate seat and has already raised $4.1 million for a campaign. But a source close to him said Menendez fears he is already being out-maneuvered by national party leaders who favor Codey.
Menendez insists his own polling of voters indicates he can run close to Kean. But Democratic strategists say that is at best wishful thinking and, at worst, a gamble few party leaders want to take. Consider how emphatically one party official dismissed Menendez: "He would get trounced. He has no chance."
Democrats need to run squeaky clean in 2006. And every other year, for that matter.