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Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy was joined Congressman Frank Pallone Jr [D-NJ] and senate candidate Vin Gopal at 4:15 p.m. Monday at the Asbury Park train station.

“It’s a great honor and privilege to have the Ambassador and the entire ticket start off the campaign here,” Mayor John Moor said. “They will win tomorrow and we are looking forward to winning again in November.” 

The trio came out ahead of the 6 to 8 p.m. get out the vote rally at the Paramount Theatre [1300 Asbury Ave] to meet with constituents, shake a few hands, and discuss their platform. 

“I’m a Monmouth County guy; that matters, it’s home,” Murphy said when asked why he chose Asbury for the Primary Election Eve Get Out The Vote Rally. “This is one of the most iconic communities in the state. It’s a community that is on the move and it stands for a lot. It’s had some tough moments but it represents not only that some progress was made but it has a long way to go. It’s a place I feel that we can look around and say you know what, we can be a great state again.”

Joined by son Josh, wife Tammy, and Bernie Sanders son Levi, they walked through the Asbury Park downtown district on the way to the rally.

“We want to remind people that there is an election Tuesday,” said Vin Gopal who has spent the past three days in Asbury Park – at Saturday’s Family Day in Springwood Park, at Sunday’s 26th Annual Pride Celebration, and Monday’s rally.

“This is a city which has rising property taxes, rising poverty rates, job growth that has not taken place over the past seven and half years, and the city has so much potential but it needs help from the State and the County” Gopal said. “We’ve seen a governor who really hasn’t done anything. It started when he got into office and cancelled the UEZ funding that specifically helped Asbury Park businesses. And from there, cancelling the homestead rebates to action item after action item, where he went after the public school teachers.”

Gopal said Murphy, a former US German Ambassador and Goldman Sachs executive, has an extraordinary message, growing up in a middle class family, former chair of the DNC Finance Committee under Howard Dean where he put infrastructure into all 50 states [a feat he’s also done in Monmouth County].

“Asbury Park important,” Pallone said when asked why launch the get out the vote rally here. “A town like Asbury is probably one of the most Democratic towns in the County. I also think though it’s because Asbury Park is an example of a town that has really come back and has all kinds of innovating ideas.”

The Primary Election will be held from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Murphy is among the 11 gubernatorial hopefuls looking to succeed Gov. Chris Christie.

In the 11th District, Democrat Vin Gopal hopes to unseat Republican incumbent Jennifer Beck, while Assembly incumbents Eric Houghtaling and Joann Downey are being challenged by Republicans Robert Acerra and Michael Whelan.

The Primary election seals the Republican and Democratic candidates that will move on to the November general election. According to an nj.com report New Jersey had 2,048,311 registered Democrats and 1,209,127 Republicans as of April, according to the state’s Division of Elections statistics. But the state’s largest number of voters — 2,402,244  — have not formally claimed any party affiliation.

And while they can vote in Tuesday’s election, doing so commits them to the party in which they choose to cast ballots.

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The Asbury Park Sun is affiliated with the triCityNews newspaper.

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