Carl Lewis faces uphill political race
MARLTON, N.J. (AP) - September 17, 2011
The issue appears to have been resolved in the affirmative with
a court ruling. Pending a longshot appeal to the entire U.S. 3rd
Circuit Court of Appeals or U.S. Supreme Court, Lewis will be
listed on the ballot as a Democrat challenging Sen. Dawn Marie
Addiego, a freshman GOP incumbent who moved up from the Assembly
last year.
The flap over Lewis' candidacy began immediately when he
announced his intention to run. Local Republicans claimed the New
Jersey native did not meet the state's residency rule, which
requires state Senate candidates to have lived here for four years
prior to running for office.
Lewis, 50, grew up in Willingboro, a middle-class suburb between
Philadelphia and Trenton. He went to college in Texas and has lived
in California recently, voting there through 2009. He has homes in
Medford and Mount Laurel in New Jersey, and in Pacific Palisades,
Calif. He's been a volunteer high school track coach in native
Willingboro since 2007.
Both Addiego and Lewis won uncontested party primaries in June,
after a federal appeals panel ordered that his name remain on the
ballot. He received 2,418 votes from Democrats; Addiego got 4,350
Republican votes.
Even though the appeals court ruled in his favor, Lewis faces an
uphill battle to unseat Addiego, 48, a lifelong area resident who
rose through the political ranks to become a state senator when a
vacancy arose last year.
The district, a horseshoe-shaped configuration of 20
municipalities in Burlington County, is solidly Republican. Gov.
Chris Christie carried the three most populous towns - Evesham,
Medford and Pemberton townships - by nearly 4,000 votes in 2009. A
Democrat hasn't won election to state government in the district in
more than 20 years.
Though both candidates have been knocking on doors and raising
money for the race, the uncertainty of the pending court decision
had been a persistent distraction.
Lewis said the legal battle to keep him off the ballot was a
carefully orchestrated attempt by Christie, the state's Republican
Party leader, to keep him from running. But he softened his tone
after being restored to the ballot, saying he had no animosity
toward Christie and that the fight was in the spirit of
competition.
Addiego said she tried to keep her focus on the campaign though
her opponent's status was uncertain.
Asked to size up her competition before the 3rd Circuit had
ruled, she deferred. "I don't know whether he's an opponent or
not. It's going to take a lot more money to run against Carl
Lewis."
Christie had already jumped in to help, appearing at a
fundraiser for her at the swanky Bernardsville Inn.
Addiego was raised in an Italian Catholic household where she
was instructed to "get a good education and put yourself in a
position to help." She studied accounting at Villanova University
and earned a law degree from Widener. Though at first she didn't
see herself as candidate material, she was encouraged to run by the
local Republican Party chief, and her "Tax Freeze" slate won her
local office in Evesham Township in 1993.
"I win, I do well, because I do it from the heart," she said.
At a recent impromptu sit-down with retirees in Evesham, Addiego
heard a lot of gripes over the state's top issue - property taxes -
which are more than $8,800 for a medium-sized home at the Village
Green over-55 community in Marlton.
Addiego expressed sympathy for the residents and frustration at
being in the minority party and therefore unable to control the
legislative agenda. She assured the retirees she had not voted for
legislation that raised taxes or increased spending.
"Some of the cuts we've had to make, some of the votes I've had
to take have not been easy," she said.
Lewis said he's tired of hearing politicians lie about lowering
taxes.
"They need to stop being dishonest and saying, `I'm going to
cut taxes.' That's such a tag line. Saying `I'm going to lower
taxes' is just like saying `kids are overweight.' Everyone says it,
but who's actually doing something about it?"
Lewis comes from a politically active family, and says this
feels like the right time for him to enter politics.
"We need to create new ideas, new jobs for a new economy," he
says, infusing the conversation with sports metaphors and rich
Olympic memories.
His parents, both teachers, knew Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and
were involved in the civil rights movement. He says he owes his
passion for education - and his desire to enter public service - to
them.
"I'm not running for state Senate because I wanted to become a
politician," Lewis said in his first public comments after the
appeals panel ruled in his favor. "I'm running because I wanted to
serve."