NJ Governor Likely To Leave Office With Unblemished Veto Record
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) -- Chris Christie may be leaving the New Jersey governor's office next month with some of the worst voter approval numbers in modern history, but there is one area where his record is likely to close with a 100 percent success rate.
The state legislature has been run by Democrats throughout Christie's eight-year tenure. There have been dozens of chances for the majority party to flex its political muscle against the governor via a veto override.
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They haven't succeeded once.
The state Senate did override a 2015 veto of a gun control bill, but the assembly couldn't come up with a two-thirds majority.
"We've had 58 or 60 attempts," Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-Gloucester County) told KYW Newsradio. "The Republicans in both houses decided to stick with their party over the issue and at the end of the day it doesn't surprise me."
But that history leaves a myriad of measures left unaddressed.
"These bills that we tried to override and the governor vetoed, they should all be coming back," Sweeney added, "because if we thought they were that important to override the governor, obviously we are principled on the issues and we want to see them passed."
And that could happen once Phil Murphy is sworn in as governor, giving Democrats complete control of state government.