Online Town Halls To Spotlight Issues For Next New Jersey Governor
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — What issues matter most when choosing who should replace Gov. Chris Christie as New Jersey's chief executive in the November election?
Watch the Sept. 18 town hall:
People from across the Garden State shared questions, topics and points of top concern through a series of live public video discussions hosted through Facebook this month.
Watch the Sept. 14 town hall:
The three virtual town halls -- happening on Sept. 14, 18 and 19 -- aim to gather insights from voters ahead of a state mandated debate for candidates taking public campaign finances.
CBS2, along with The Record and William Paterson University, will use this input from New Jersey voters in preparing to host the candidate debate on Oct. 18.
Democrat and former U.S. Ambassador to Germany Phil Murphy and Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno won in the New Jersey gubernatorial primaries held last June.
CBS2's Kristine Johnson moderated the town halls on Sept. 14 and Sept. 18, as will host next month's final debate between the gubernatorial candidates. The discussion on Sept. 19 was moderated by Jessica Dean of CBS station KYW-TV in Philadelphia. Alfred Doblin, editorial editor of The Record, co-moderated all three town halls.
WEB EXTRA: The Record's Alfred Doblin discusses issues confronting New Jersey voters.
In July, the two major parties broadened their tickets by naming lieutenant governor running mates.
Republican candidate Guadagno named Mayor Carlos Rendo, of Woodcliff Lakes, as her partner, bringing a Bergen County leader into her campaign.
After winning her party's nomination, Guadagno said there were too many New Jersey families who cannot afford to stay in the state and have to pack up and leave.
"My principles are Main Street principles. I learned them growing up as I moved from town to town and state to state, when my father lost his job and he had to move to another state to get a better job and a better future for his wife and his five children," she said. "I learned a lot, and I bring those values today."
Democrat Murphy named former Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver, matching an experienced lawmaker to his Wall Street experience. Murphy, 59, a multimillionaire former executive at Goldman Sachs, has been pushing a progressive platform – and also an anti-Christie platform.
"Four more years of Christie-style politics won't change New Jersey's unfair, unsuccessful, unsustainable course," he said.
Both candidates' election campaigns are expected to be critical of Christie, who is term limited and must leave office.
