NJ GOV 2005: What if Doug Forrester won?

[Suburbia]

What if wealthy Republican businessman Douglas R. Forrester beat Sen. Jon S. Corzine in the 2005 N.J. gubernatorial election? Would he have ran for reelection in 2009? What would his political future have been?

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/08/nyregion/metrocampaigns/forrester-to-face-corzine-in-race-for-new-jersey.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/06/nyregion/metrocampaigns/corzine-and-forrester-test-campaign-themes-and.html

[Heisenberg]

What if wealthy Republican businessman Douglas R. Forrester beat Sen. Jon S. Corzine in the 2005 N.J. gubernatorial election? Would he have ran for reelection in 2009? What would his political future have been?

The biggest thing I can see is no Christie.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

What if sea-slugs could talk?

[The Arizonan]

What if wealthy Republican businessman Douglas R. Forrester beat Sen. Jon S. Corzine in the 2005 N.J. gubernatorial election? Would he have ran for reelection in 2009? What would his political future have been?

The biggest thing I can see is no Christie.

The 2016 Presidential Election would be pretty much the same.

[Pericles]

What if wealthy Republican businessman Douglas R. Forrester beat Sen. Jon S. Corzine in the 2005 N.J. gubernatorial election? Would he have ran for reelection in 2009? What would his political future have been?

The biggest thing I can see is no Christie.

The 2016 Presidential Election would be pretty much the same.

No Christie means that Marco Rubio comes second in New Hampshire(no debate glitch) and it probably becomes Rubio vs Trump, which head to head polling showed was much worse for Trump than Trump vs a divided field and likely ends with a Rubio victory and either President Rubio or President Clinton, both of whom would be better than Trump.

[Lord Admirale]

No Christie, unsure about 2009. I think Cory Booker would probably try running in 2009, defeat Forrester, win reelection with the same popularity as Christie had because of Hurricane Sandy. With this popularity at his side (and assuming Bridgegate doesn't happen), Cory Booker becomes a formidable candidate to run against HRC. Not sure if he will, though...

If Bridgegate actually happens under Booker, then you'd probably see a 2017 Republican landslide. I think Thomas Kean, Jr. would run to fill his father's shoes.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Christie never destroys Little Marco at the New Hampshire debate. Rubio does better in New Hampshire and goes on to take South Carolina. Despite glaring weaknesses as a candidate, the anti-Trumpists coalesce around him. He is inaugurated as our new President on January 20th, 2017 where, despite his popular vote loss the previous November, he declares his win as another victory for Reaganism. Meanwhile, establishment Republicans smile and nudge each other, rejoicing at their narrow victory over Bernie Sanders and their hopes for a lasting victory for neoliberalism.