Assembly Speaker Blasts Governor on Senate Election Date

The top Democrat in the New Jersey Assembly is blasting Gov. Chris Christie for calling a special U.S. Senate election less than three weeks before the Nov. 5 general election.

Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver says the governor is putting his own political interests first and wasting taxpayer money.

The governor announced Tuesday he has set Oct. 16 as the date for a special election to fill the seat of Democrat Frank Lautenberg, who died Monday. The primary will be Aug. 13.

Oliver says the Senate election should have been scheduled on the day of the November general election, when Christie is up for re-election. That timing could have driven more Democrats to the polls.

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