Incumbent assemblymen are heavy favorites in 26th

BY LAWRENCE RAGONESE

In Republican circles, Assemblymen Alex DeCroce and Jay Webber have clout. DeCroce is Assembly Minority Leader. Webber is chairman of the state GOP. They are based in arguably the state's most dominant Republican setting -- Morris County.

Enter Wayne Marek and Douglas Herbert, Democrats. Their task: With little money and no major campaign organization, take on DeCroce and Webber at the polls on Nov. 3. And do it in a district where Republicans are working overtime to get out the vote for favorite son Chris Christie, the Republican gubernatorial candidate.

"It's like being a minnow swimming with the sharks,'' laughed Marek, who has been running a stealth campaign, quietly knocking on doors in the district, hoping DeCroce and Webber are busy with Christie's race and may overlook their own re-election bid.

"That's not going to happen,'' DeCroce said last week. "We are not taking voters for granted here,'' he added, referring to the 15-town district in northern and eastern Morris County and northern Passaic County.

Veteran legislator DeCroce, 72, of Parsippany, who is seeking his 10th term in the Assembly, and Webber, 37, a first-term legislator from Morris Plains, have similar priorities: Cut state spending, roll back property taxes and income tax rates, cut corporate and business taxes to spur the economy and create jobs, plus reduce the cost of health insurance to state residents.

These tasks, they say, will be easier to accomplish with a Republican governor.

"When the economy bounces back -- and it always will in America -- we have to be ready to move,'' said Webber. "The state's residents are looking for relief, looking for leadership and we are poised to provide it.''

DeCroce said his top priority is lowering property taxes. But it can't be done with a simple piece of legislation, he said. It requires a coordinated effort on several fronts: cutting spending, with a legislated state spending cap; a tax rebate program that credits residents' tax bills -- no more paper check bureaucracy; limiting the growth of government; and eliminating the "wealth tax."

"We have to be able to compete for jobs,'' DeCroce said. "Right now we are driving businesses from New Jersey. Pennsylvania Gov. (Edward) Rendell must really be enjoying himself, watching Jersey business move to his state.''

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