Elnardo Webster

New Jersey Democrats haven’t had a real statewide primary in eight years – the last time was in 2000, when newcomer Jon Corzine beat former Governor Jim Florio’s South Jersey-based coalition in the U.S. Senate primary by a 58%-42% margin.

In the eleven primaries since Democrats last lost a U.S. Senate race in 1972, eight of them have been virtually uncontested. In 1978, basketball star Bill Bradley beat the establishment choice, State Treasurer Richard Leone, by a 59%-26% margin, with ex-State Sen. Alexander Menza receiving 9%. And in 1982, newcomer Frank Lautenberg won a ten candidate primary with 26% of the vote against former Reps. Andrew Maguire (23%) and Joseph LeFante (20%), and Princeton Mayor Barbara Boggs Sigmund (11%). Six other candidates – businessman Howard Rosen, former state Banking Commissioner Angelo Bianchi, Passaic County Freeholder Cyril Yannarelli, labor leader Frank Forst, Richard McAleer, and Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello combined for the remaining votes. Cresitello, who is running again this year, finished last with 4,295 votes statewide.

Former New York Giants linebacker Carl Banks will headline a $1,000-per-person fundraiser for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Sunday at the home of Donna and John MacPhee in Ridgewood.  Rep. Steve Rothman, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and State Sen. Loretta Weinberg will also be in attendance. 

The most vulnerable member of the New Jersey congressional delegation in 2008 is Donald Payne, a ten-term Democrat from Newark who won 97% of the vote in his last contested race. The 72-year-old Congressman has found himself on the wrong side of an Essex County Democratic political battle, and continues to anger some party leaders by the independent candidacy of his brother, Assemblyman William Payne, 74, in a race for the State Senate.

Payne's nephew, Craig Stanley, was defeated in a Democratic primary for State Assembly last week in a district where he was a six-term incumbent. Two other Payne-endorsed legislators, Oadline Truitt and Wilfredo Caraballo, also lost re-election in the primary. But another Payne candidate, State Sen. Ronald Rice, narrowly held his seat against a challenge from the political organization of Newark Mayor Cory Booker.

U.S. Senator Robert Menendez will face a minor primary challenge from James Kelly, a resident of a group home for the metally disabled in Morris County. Kelly sought the Democratic nomination for Governor in 2005 and ran for Congress in 1998. Menendez becomes the first incumbent United States Senator with a challenge for his party's nomination since 1988, when Frank Lautenberg was opposed by Elnardo Webster, Jr., the father of attorney Elnardo Webster III, a key player in the campaign of Newark mayoral candidate Cory Booker. Webster won 15% of the vote in that race.