Acting New Jersey Gov. Richard J. Codey said Monday he would not run for the office in November 2005, clearing the way for U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J.
Codey, who as president of the New Jersey Senate became acting governor upon the resignation of Democrat Jim McGreevey, said family obligations and his desire to focus on the 11 months remaining in the current gubernatorial term would keep him from making the race.
With Codey out of the race, Corzine, the multimillionaire former chairman of Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs, now has a clear path to the Democrats' 2005 gubernatorial nomination. Seven Republicans, including former Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler and businessman Doug Forrester, who ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 2002, are also currently in the race.
Recent polls indicated Codey's popularity had increased among New Jersey voters but Corzine held an insurmountable advantage, largely because of an almost unlimited personal campaign war chest. In 2000, Corzine paid for his $63 million campaign for U.S. Senate largely out of his own pocket.
© Copyright 2005 by United Press International
