Reply #6: Matt Ahearn [View All]

[NewJerseyDem]

He is actually from the 38th district and is a former democrat. He was first elected in 2001, but early this year he discovered that the democratic party organization was going to try to oust him in the primary. He had had some disputes with the democrats over the environment so he joined the Green Party. I'm pretty sure that he doesn't caucus with the democrats. I believe he opposed the democrats in the budget fight but I'm not 100% sure. He will probably lose and may very well take away enough votes from the two democrats in that district to allow the republicans to win in this swing district.

He isn't the only assemblyman to switch parties because the party organization has opposed him. Assemblywoman Arline Friscia was defeated in the democratic party primary when the party organization backed another person, a man (This state isn't the best for female politicians). She then switched to the republican party and is running as a republican and could win in this pretty solid democratic district. She is probably the most liberal republican ever.

Also, Rafuel Fraguela became a republican after the party turned against him but it is viewed that he has virtually no chance to hold his seat.

There were more internal problems in the two state senate races where the party organization was actually defeated in primary. The party has to stop trying to defeat its own incumbents. We went from 54 democratic assemblymen in 2002 to only 51 now.