N.J. Senate race remains tight for Corzine and Franks

As the polls open this morning, New Jersey voters will process information from countless television advertisements and political rallies and decide who should represent them as their next U.S. Senator.

The candidates, Republican Rep. Bob Franks (R-N.J.) and Democrat Jon Corzine, have been campaigning non-stop in recent weeks, trying to sway the nearly 12 percent of the electorate that is still undecided.

The latest poll, released yesterday by Quinnipiac University, has the candidates in a statistical tie with Franks receiving 45 percent of likely voters and Corzine receiving 43 percent.

Despite the many issues facing New Jersey residents, the campaign has centered on finance reform and spending practices. Corzine, former chairman of Goldman, Sachs & Co, has spent approximately $60 million campaigning for the primary and general election, the most money ever spent by a single Senatorial candidate.

Franks has alleged that Corzine is trying to buy the New Jersey Senate seat and subvert the democratic process. Corzine maintains his spending shows that he is not beholden to special interest groups and will not be influenced in Congress.

Aside from their views on campaign spending, the candidates have differing opinions on the major issues facing the 107th Congress. Franks argues that his experience in the House of Representatives, especially his service on the budget committee, demonstrates his ability to stop Washington bureaucrats from raiding the Social Security fund, according to the Franks campaign Website.

"[Franks] committed to making sure that all the $1.8 trillion Social Security surplus — which is expected to accumulate over the next 10 years — is locked away and used exclusively to strengthen Social Security and prepare for the enormous challenge facing the system when the Baby Boom generation begins to retire," according to the Website.

For his part, Corzine has proposed an eight-point plan that he would follow in the Senate. The plan recommends covering all children under Medicare, requiring employers to provide health coverage for all their workers, providing tax incentives for the self-employed and protecting employees who change jobs, according to the Corzine campaign Website.

"When Democrats sought to reform the health care system, opponents paraded a host of horrors that reform would supposedly bring; today, we have most of the horrors, and none of the protections. Just because the special interests defeated national health reform in 1994 doesn't mean we should turn tail and run. We need to change health insurance so every American is covered in the right way, and we need to do it now," a statement from Corzine reads.

Another issue facing the next Congress is the reevaluation of the American education system. Franks has recommended eliminating the bureaucracy of education and sending money directly to schools. He also advocates that school districts include character education in their curricula, according to the Franks campaign Website.

"[I] believe education decisions should be made by the people who know our children's names — not faceless bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. [I have] consistently voted to return more education dollars and decisions to local communities," reads a statement on Franks' Website.

Corzine has proposed a five-point plan to correct the education system in America. The plan recommends universal preschool, higher education, character education, after-school programs and teacher certification and support, according to the Corzine campaign Website.

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"I want to build the best public school system in the world, and I won't be satisfied until we do. Every child in this state has a right to a first-rate education, from pre-school through college, from our poorest cities to our wealthiest suburbs," according to the Website.

The next Congress will also face restructuring the current gun laws. Franks is advocating an increased police presence in American cities and stronger prison sentences.

"Bob Franks is the author of a federal 'Joan's Law.' The law mandates a term of no less than life in prison with no opportunity for early release for anyone who commits a serious violent crime that results in the death of a child," reads a Franks statement on his Website.

Corzine proposes an 11-point plan to prevent crime, focusing on gun legislation. The plan includes universal licensing and registration and mandatory sentences for gun crimes.

"Republicans, in debt to the NRA, have consistently fought reasonable restrictions on the purchase and sale of handguns, including waiting periods, background checks, child safety locks, and prohibitions on assault weapons that leave the police outgunned by the criminals. The NRA's lock on the United States Congress needs to be broken. If I go to the Senate, I will fight day in and day out to enact the toughest possible gun control," reads a statement on Corzine's Website.