New Jersey is not that blue.

Fellow Republican blogger, and proud linker Dan Cirucci is pondering over the seemingly surprising poll which shows that New Jersey voters are tending anti-Obama on several key issues, while it may be surprising due to the fact New Jersey is thought of as a liberal blue state, an investigation would show that New Jersey is a blue state, but not like New York or Massachusetts is.

During the 2004 Presidential election, Senator John Kerry carried the state by a 52.0-46.2% margin over then President George W. Bush.

During the 2008 Presidential election, then Senator Barack Obama carried the state by a 57.14-41.61% margin over Senator John McCain.

During the 2006 Senate election, Senator Bob Menendez defeated Republican opponent Thomas Kean Jr. by a 53.5-44.3% margin.

During the 2008 Senate election, Senator Frank Lautenberg defeated Republican opponent Dick Zimmer by a 55.33-42.49% margin.

Five of New Jersey's thirteen congressional seats are Republican, with only one that switched sides last year, only by a slim margin in the third congressional district, however, with a far-left liberal currently elected to that district, I wouldn't put the seat flipping back to Republican hands out of question.

If you go even deeper, the New Jersey Legislature is also heavily represented with Republicans, as Republicans hold 17 of the 40 seats in the New Jersey Senate, and Republicans hold 31 of 80 seats in the New Jersey version of the House of Representatives, not to mention Chris Christie is leading the current Democrat Governor by nearly ten point margins with 37 days to election day.

While New Jersey is a historically a Democrat state, New Jersey is not far-left liberal state like New York, Massachusetts, Delaware, or other states in and around the region.

Is there hope for a "red" New Jersey? I believe there is, with New Jersey not Democrat by super-margins as in New York state, a competitive nature that Republican candidates are able to muster in the state, good voter registration drives, and working at dissatisfied Democrats, the Republican party could one day become the leading party in Jersey, although I don't see that happening overnight.

To see the poll results, as posted on Dan Cirucci's blog, please visit http://dancirucci.blogspot.com/2009/09/blue-jersey-surprising-poll.html