TRENTON – Gov. Chris Christie dismissed the notion Tuesday he’s calling a special election to fill former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s seat in an effort to avoid sharing the ballot this November with a Senate contender.
The governor brushed off questions from reporters who inquired whether his decision to call for a special election a month before the November election had anything to do with his own bid for re-election.
“Listen, I can’t worry about some of the nonsense that gets written. I just can’t,” Christie said during the news conference when asked about a Drudge Report headline that reads: “Chris Christie to spend $24 million in N.J. tax money on special election to avoid Cory Booker …”
The governor stood his ground, arguing his decision to call for an October special election is to get someone in the seat as soon as possible.
“The fact is that I favor the people selecting who represents them – not me – the people who represent them,” he said.
“As for the rest of the nonsense, if I spent nearly enough time as others apparently looking at what’s on the Internet, I would lose my mind,” he said.
Despite Christie’s statements, several Republican sources told PolitickerNJ the last thing Christie wanted is the Senate race sharing the ballot in November.
Reported estimates of a special election reach about $24 million – which accounts for a roughly $12 million special primary and a $12 million special election.
Christie said during the news conference that he isn’t worried about the cost.
“I don’t know what the cost is and I quite frankly don’t care. I don’t think you can put a price tag on what it’s worth it have an elected person in the United States Senate and I will do whatever I need to do to make sure those costs are covered because all the people of the state of New Jersey will benefit from it. And we’re not going to be penny wise and pound foolish around here,” he said.
