Candidates of the 3rd District: "We Have a Situation!"

A candidate’s campaign strategy is a key aspect in determining the result of any election. Negative campaigning is an approach to politics in which candidates try to gain an advantage by emphasizing their positive attributes while pointing out the flaws of their running mates. John Adler and Jon Runyan’s interesting campaign strategies have been surprisingly similar, in that they have both been engaging in negative campaigning through their nonstop attacks on each other.

As I talked about in previous blogs, Adler and Runyan have been using their finances to “campaign” through their ads attacking the other candidate, instead of spending their time and money addressing issues that voters care about, such as jobs or healthcare. In a poll taken by Richard Stockton College of 1,200 likely voters in South Jersey, 66% of voters chose the economy/jobs as the biggest issue they’re facing, while 27% of voters chose healthcare.  According to Rob Spahr of the Press of Atlantic City, “The personal attacks, accusations and stunts pulled by the candidates have turned the 3rd District race for House of Representatives into a political version of ‘Jersey Shore.’” I have to agree with Spahr: the candidates should be focusing their time and attention towards more important matters at hand in order to try and gain more support from voters, instead of resorting to mudslinging each other to try and gain an advantage that way. Here is a video of Adler and Runyan addressing issues they have with each other during a meeting.

At this point of the election, voters within the third district of New Jersey are uncertain of whether they want a candidate who can bring the much needed change or whether they want someone who has the experience to get things done. Adler and Runyan have turned this congressional race into a battle based solely on attacks and counterattacks. Is the mudslinging really helping any candidate gain a substantial advantage? Or are the candidates' investment in negative campaigning going to hurt them in the end? With the direction Adler and Runyan are heading in now with their negative campaign tactics, voters will need to think twice about who they ultimately want to represent them.