ABSTRACT
Party had committed money and energy to target the New Jersey Senate seat
for victory. But Dawkins had one glaring vulnerability: he was perceived as
an opportunistic newcomer. He had moved to New Jersey just before
announcing his candidacy and he had been mentioned as a possible candidate for elective office in about nine other states in the few years since he had retired from the military. The Dawkins strategy was to take on this issue from the start. In his announcement speech, Dawkins, surrounded by his family, talked about his dreams and hopes for America and, with a smile and confident look, he stated: “I moved around a lot. I lived in a lot of places. But I have to tell you that throughout all those years, in all those places, I never found a single place that had as good people or as much promise as I found right here in our Garden State.”
