Promising a bipartisan approach to New Jersey’s tax and budget woes, Gov.-elect Chris Christie spent the day yesterday in a traditional Democratic enclave that broke ranks and helped usher him into the state’s highest office.
Voters honked their horns and stopped to shake hands with Christie and Lt. Gov.-elect Kim Guadagno as they toured downtown Woodbridge — which he carried by 2,000 votes — with Democratic Mayor John McCormac.
“I’m a Democrat but I voted for you,” someone shouted at Christie, NJ.com reported.
For his part, Christie said he was open to ideas from both sides of the political aisle.
“The problems are too big in this state to say there’s only Republican answers or Democratic answers,” he said, according to NJ.com. “We refuse to become isolated in Trenton.”
Christie on Tuesday became the first Republican elected to statewide office in more than a decade when he defeated incumbent Jon Corzine.
President Obama, who had campaigned repeatedly for Corzine, phoned Christie yesterday.
“We both confirmed to one another that there were no hard feelings,” said the governor-elect.
Meanwhile, lame-duck Corzine yesterday ordered his Cabinet to come up with $400 million in budget cuts.