Sen. Jon S. Corzine (D-N.J.) plans to announce that he will run for governor of New Jersey next year and is widely regarded as the strong early favorite to win, according to party sources.
Corzine, who will retain his Senate seat while campaigning for the governorship and would name his successor if he won, will announce his candidacy as soon as tomorrow, the sources said.
Corzine, 57, who ran the Senate Democrats' campaign operation this year, made no secret about his interest in the governorship since James E. McGreevey (D) announced his resignation from the post in August after disclosing he had an adulterous affair with a man whom he hired to oversee the state's homeland security activities.
At the time, Corzine signaled he would run if there was a special election to fill the governor's job. But McGreevey said he would stay on the job until mid-November, when, under New Jersey law, he was succeeded by state Senate President Richard J. Codey (D).
Corzine could face a challenge from acting Gov. Codey in the Democratic primary if Codey decides he wants to keep his new job. Codey is not expected to disclose his plans until after his State of the State address in January.
A half-dozen Republicans have been mentioned as possible candidates, including businessman Douglas R. Forrester, who ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2002; Bret Schundler, a former Jersey City mayor who lost to McGreevey in 2001; and former House member Bob Franks, who lost to Corzine in 2000. Forrester has already begun running campaign ads.
But a recent poll indicates Corzine is entering the race with a formidable lead. A Quinnipiac University survey shortly after Codey took office showed Corzine leading Codey, 60 percent to 20 percent, in a Democratic primary matchup. It also showed Corzine handily defeating any of the Republicans.
Corzine, a former head of the Goldman Sachs investment firm, was elected to the Senate in 2000, using more than $60 million of his fortune to win the seat and breaking all records for self-funding of Senate races.
He was chosen to head the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in 2002 and won praise from fellow Democrats for his fundraising and candidate recruitment efforts. But Democrats wound up losing four seats, largely because of losses in five southern states where Democratic incumbents retired.
Corzine was succeeded as campaign chairman by Sen. Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.), who had considered running for governor of New York but decided to remain in the Senate.
Corzine's six-year Senate term does not end until 2006, so he can keep his Senate seat while running for governor. Under state law, he would name his successor in the Senate if he were elected governor, ensuring that the seat remained in Democratic hands at least through 2006. If he is not elected to the governorship, he would most likely run again for the Senate, a party source said.
Although he proved adept at fundraising as Democratic campaign chairman, Corzine is likely to pull out his own wallet again for the gubernatorial race, in part to demonstrate his independence from special interests in a campaign that is likely to focus on ethics issues, a source close to the senator said. The issue of "buying" a Senate seat, which was raised against Corzine in 2000, could be defused to some extent if Schundler and Forrester, who are also very wealthy, contribute to their own campaigns, too.
