Hanlon Scores More Endorsements For Monmouth GOP Chair

Assemblyman Rob Clifton, Sheriff Shaun Golden, Surrogate Rosemarie Peters and Freeholder Tom Arone, Gary Rich and Serena DiMaso have joined the long line of Monmouth County elected officials who are supporting Christine G. Hanlon in her quest to become the first female Chair of the Monmouth County Republican Organization.

They sent the following letter to County Committee members earlier this week:

We are writing today to express our strong support for Christine Hanlon to become our next Republican County Chair.  Reorganization of our party will take place on June 12, 2012 at 7pm at the Colts Neck High School.  We urge you to come to reorganization and cast your vote for Christine Hanlon for County Chair.

Over the years, Christine Hanlon has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to electing Republicans at every level of government.  She served as the Monmouth Coordinator, under Chairman Joe Oxley, for national, state and county races.  Christine was the coordinator for the McCain-Palin campaign in 2008, the Christie-Guadagno campaign in 2009, and our county campaigns in 2010 and 2011.  She also assisted with state legislative campaigns for years.

The success our party has achieved in recent years is due in large part to Christine’s tireless efforts.  She has the unique experience, skills and leadership abilities needed to lead our party into the future. 

Our candidates need a strong leader with unparalleled organizational skills and the knowledge of our county-wide Republican operation.  Christine Hanlon has the experience and the ability to ensure that Monmouth County will remain in Republican control and that our candidates and party have the resources we need to win.

This year, the Democrats will have a new County Chairman and will work hard to win two seats on the Freeholder Board and the constitutional office of County Clerk.  They will also seek to defeat our national candidates by increasing Democrat voter turnout in Monmouth County.  We must not let that happen!  We need to maintain the stability of our organization and continue the progress we have made over the past four years. We must continue moving forward!

We strongly and enthusiastically support Christine Hanlon for Monmouth Republican Chair.  Join us in showing your support for Christine at the Colts Neck High School on Tuesday, June 12, 2012 at 7pm.

• Tweet

Patrick Murray predicts that Cullari will defeat Little

Monmouth University Polling Director Patrick Murray says on PolitickerNJ that Ernesto Cullari will defeat Anna Little in the CD-6 GOP primary based on Senator Joe Kyrillos coattails and “the bigger issue” that some of Little’s key supporters have fallen out with her since the 2010 race.

I wonder who Patrick is referring to.

CD6 GOP
2010 nominee Anna Little hopes lightning strikes twice and she knocks off the Monmouth County organization’s preferred candidate – this time, Ernesto Cullari.  But it just ain’t gonna happen.  It’s not because the party has gotten any better at GOTV.  Fewer than 14,000 Republicans voted in the last primary – and the only reason more will vote this year is that native son Joe Kyrillos is running for Senate.  The bigger issue is that some of Little’s key supporters have fallen out with her since the last race.  Winner:  Cullari

Murray predicts that 15% of partisan voters will come out on Tuesday statewide.   If the turnout is higher in Monmouth because of Kyrillos’ favorite son status, that should favor Cullari.  Little benefits from Kyrillos’s coattails in Middlesex where she appears under the senator on the ballot. 

Despite Murray’s swipe at the Monmouth GOP get out the vote effort, the real key to this race is will be the turnout in Middlesex.   If Sam Thompson’s team gets 5000 or more voters to the polls, Little should win.   In the 2010 race less than 3800 Middlesex Republicans voted.  However the Middlesex portion of the district is much larger now since redistricting.  If less than 5000 voters come out in Middlesex and 6000 come out in Monmouth, Cullari wins.   If 10,000 come out in Monmouth because of Kyrillos, Cullari wins handily.

MMM’s prediction:  In a repeat of 2010, the race will go to a recount. 

Unlike 2010 the race, the recount won’t be resolved before the Monmouth GOP convention.  Little will get up at the convention and endorse John Bennett for Chair as a payback for headlining her $10 per head spaghetti dinner fundraiser in Keansburg.  Cullari will get up and endorse Christine Hanlon because she’s Christine Hanlon.

Little will be forced to concede on June 15 in order to pay her fines from the FEC.  She won’t have enough money to pay her recount team and the fines.  John Bennett, fresh off his defeat in the Chair’s race, will be in Florida and unable to host a spaghetti dinner to pay Little’s fines and pay the recount team.

• Tweet

Curley: “None of the above!”

Freeholder Director John Curley told MMM that he does not support either former Senate President John Bennett or State Committeewoman Christine Hanlon becoming the next chair of the Monmouth County Republican Committee.

“If I had a vote I wouldn’t vote for either one of them,” said Curley, “The chair should not be someone who is hussling for government contracts.”

• Tweet

Clifton will endorse Hanlon for Monmouth County GOP Chair

Assemblyman Rob Clifton will join Senators Joe Kyrillos and Jennifer Beck, and his Assembly colleagues Mary Pat Angelini, Amy Handlin, and Dave Rible in endorsing GOP State Committeewoman Christine Hanlon as the next Monmouth County GOP Chair.

A formal announcement is expected later today or tomorrow.

Clifton’s endorsement will give Hanlon the formal support of 6 of the 9 member of the Monmouth County Legislative Delegation.  Assembly members Sean Kean, Declan O’Scanlon and Caroline Casagrande have yet to express a preference for either Hanlon or her opponent, former Senate President John Bennett.

• Tweet

Monmouth Legislators Endorse Christine Hanlon for GOP Chair

The majority of Monmouth County’s legislative delagation has signed a letter endorsing State Committeewoman and Ocean Township Municipal Chair Christine Hanlon in her quest to become the next Chair of the Monmouth County Republcian Committee. 

Senators Joe Kyrillos and Jennifer Beck were joined by Assembly Members Amy Handlin, Mary Pat Angelini and Dave Rible in signing the letter that was mailed to county committee members and candidates.

We are writing to you today to endorse State Committeewoman and Ocean Municipal Chairwoman Christine Hanlon as the next Chair of the Monmouth County Republican Party and ask you to vote for her on June 12^th.

Christine has been an integral part of our recent Republican successes at every level.  She has served as the Monmouth Coordinator for both the McCain-Palin presidential campaign and the Christie- Guadagno gubernatorial campaign. She has run the last three Monmouth County Republican Victory Galas, and many other fundraising events, raising in excess of $500,000 for the party.  For the past three years, she has assisted the Chairman in the coordination of our county campaigns, and worked with him to develop campaign plans, including strategy and voter targeting, direct mail and our county wide vote by mail program.

Just as importantly, Christine has worked to develop and sustained grassroots network, increased volunteer participation and increased communication from the organization to people like you, the lifeblood of our party. As Chair, she will continue her efforts to keep you informed and involved and continue to raise the money needed to win aggressive campaigns.

With the recent nomination of Monmouth County Republican Chair Joe Oxley to become the Superior Court bench, we must find a new Chair who will continue his recent successes in leading our party. Christine Hanlon has played an integral part in those successes and we are writing today to ask you to vote for Christine  to succeed Chairman Oxley as Monmouth County Republican Chair.

We strongly endorse Christine Hanlon for Chairwoman, and ask that you vote for her at the upcoming Monmouth County Republican Convention.

• Tweet

HANLON ANNOUNCES ENDORSEMENTS BY MONMOUTH REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP

Christine Hanlon today released a list of municipal chairs and party leaders supporting her in the upcoming election for Monmouth County Republican Chair. The chairs who have pledged their support to Hanlon represent 394 county committee members, more than half of the 768 total committee membership.

 “I am grateful and humbled by the support I’ve gotten from so many people across Monmouth County since I announced my candidacy for Monmouth County Republican Chair,” said Hanlon. “The leadership of our party understands that we must keep moving forward and know that I am the choice to keep our party stable and to lead us into the future. People are happy at the direction the party has taken in the last four years and they want to keep moving forward. We’ve improved our fundraising efforts, expanded our grassroots network and volunteer support, improved communication with our base and most importantly, won elections. I’ve been involved in all of those efforts, and if I’m elected Chair, people know those efforts will continue.”

The list of Municipal Chairs and party leaders supporting Hanlon include:

MonmouthCounty Republican Committee Vice-Chair Diane Gooch

Aberdeen Chair- Sheilah Balavram

Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

Strange Bedfellows

Unverified rumors fresh off the grapevine point to previously unthinkable alliances forming in the Monmouth GOP chair’s race.

The Howell GOP appears to be united behind John Bennett for Chairman.  John Costigan, Bob Walsh, Joe DiBella and Sue Veitengruber are all lining up behind the former Acting Governor, according to a Bennett supporter who added that Western Monmouth is “locked up” for Bennett.

• Tweet

HANLON ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY FOR MONMOUTH COUNTY REPUBLICAN CHAIR

Republican State Committeewoman would be first female Republican Chair in Monmouth County History

OCEAN TWP.- Monmouth Republican State Committeewoman and Ocean Township Municipal Chair Christine Hanlon today formally announced her candidacy for Monmouth County Republican Chair. Hanlon, an attorney, has assisted Chairman Joe Oxley with the administration of the County Republican Party in recent years. She served as County Coordinator for the McCain-Palin campaign in 2008 and the Christie-Guadagno campaign in 2009. If elected, Hanlon will be the first female Republican Chair in Monmouth County history.

“Through my work on recent county-wide campaigns, I have become intimately familiar with and fully engaged in the inner workings and administration of our county Republican organization,” said Hanlon, who has the backing of most of the party leadership in the County.” I have worked hard to develop a strong grassroots volunteer network throughout the county, to increase communication from the organization, and to implement the use of technology and social media to advance voter outreach.”

“Monmouth Republicans will have a clear choice. We can move backward, or we can move forward. While we must honor our past, we must continue to move forward without the weight of past issues that can distract us from our mission,” concluded Hanlon.

• Tweet

Oxley’s Nomination To Superior Court Announced By Christie

Photo credit: Scarcini, Hollenbeck

Governor Chris Christie nominated Monmouth County Republican Chairman Joe Oxley to the Superior Court this afternoon.

Oxley, who will complete his second term as Monmouth GOP Chair upon the election of his successor on June, 12, is a graduate of the University of Maryland and Delaware Law School.   He was elected Monmouth County Sheriff in 1995 after defeating William Lanzaro in the GOP primary and served as Sheriff until 2007.   He is a partner in the Scarinci Hollenbeck law firm and an adjunct professor at Monmouth University.

Oxley was elected Chairman by acclamation in June of 2008.  After narrowly losing control of the Monmouth County Freeholder Board in the Obama election of 08, Oxley brought stability and three straight victorious elections to a previously divided party.  He will leave his successor with a 5-0 Freeholder Board and an entirely Republican legislative delegation.

Oxley’s nomination has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee for a confirmation hearing.

Former Senate President John Bennett and State Committeewoman Christine Hanlon are running to replace Oxley as Monmouth GOP Chair.

• Tweet

Monmouth GOP Chair Race: Bennett vs Hanlon

State Committee Members Set To Face Off 

John Bennett

Former Senate President John O. Bennett, III, a present State Committee Member and Christine G. Hanlon, Bennett’s colleague in representing Monmouth County in the State Republican Party are readying for what is likely to be a heated race for the Monmouth County GOP chairmanship.

With Chairman Joe Oxley’s nomination to the Superior Court all but official, both would be chairs are busy lining up support from elected officials and municipal chairs, both with the caveat that they would support Oxley for another term should Governor Chris Christie’s “intent to nominate” notification to the State Senate not become an actual nomination.  There is typically a 10 day period before the Governor notifies the Senate of his intent to nominate a judge and the actual nomination being received by the Senate.  Christie’s Notice of Intention regarding Oxley was filed on May 3.

By statute, the Chair must be elected on June 12, the first Tuesday after the June 5 primary.  County Committee members elected in the primary will cast their votes at a convention.

Former MA Governor Mitt Romney, Christine Hanlon, NJ Governor Chris Christie

Bennett vs Hanlon will be a battle of the sexes and a battle of generations.  Bennett, 63, represents the senior generation of the Monmouth GOP’s good and bad “old days”. Hanlon, 44 and a mother of four, who has served as Oxley’s unofficial assistant chairperson for the last four years, represents the recent success of the Monmouth GOP.  Both candidates expect a bright future.

• Tweet