SPEAKING OF CORRUPTION. NEW JERSEY IS HEAVY COMPETITION.

Newark, New Jersey is the county seat for Essex County.

December 2009 - Ten people have been arrested in New Jersey in connection with ballot tampering.

The nearly year-long investigation has cut deep into the Essex County political machine, ensnaring 10 defendants, including Freeholder Samuel Gonzalez, [state Sen. Teresa] Ruiz’s husband, [who is also an aide to Newark councilman Anibal Ramos.]; Carmine Casciano , the superintendent of elections; and aides to Democratic power broker Stephen Adubato and [an aide to] Newark Mayor Cory Booker.

Also indicted was Jonathon Kowalski, a $121,115-a-year fundraiser for the North Ward Center, the social service non-profit organization in Newark founded by Adubato. Joaquin Caceres a senior program development specialist on the staff of Newark Mayor Cory Booker, resigned within hours of the indictment. John Fernandez and Edwin Cruz, both employees of the Essex County Department of Economic Development, were named as well.

March 2009 - Former campaign worker Antonio Santana was indicted on charges of forgery, election fraud, and tampering with public records.

August 2009 - Indicted: Angel Colon, an employee of the City of Newark Office of Affirmative Action, and his fiancée, Sorinette Rosario, an employee of the Newark Welfare Department, with election fraud (2nd degree), conspiracy to commit election fraud (2nd degree), absentee ballot fraud (3rd degree), conspiracy to commit absentee ballot fraud (3rd degree), tampering with public records or information (3rd degree), and forgery (4th degree).

GUILTY PLEAS March 2010 - Superintendent of Elections Casciano pleaded guilty to submitting phony absentee ballots while working for the 2007 campaign of state Sen. Teresa Ruiz. Casciano was charged in January 2010 with official misconduct in a scheme to give paid days off to employees who worked on political campaigns. Gianine Narvae, a data processor for the Essex County Superintendent of Elections, pleaded guilty Marcy 3, 2010 to submitting fraudulent absentee ballots while working for the 2007 campaign of state Sen. Teresa Ruiz.

State Sen. Teresa Ruiz won election in November to the 29th Legislative District. Her husband also serves as an aide to Newark City Councilman Anibal Ramos. Ruiz has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

Ruiz, whose campaign was backed by Adubato, was deputy chief of staff to Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo.

July 2009 - Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Ronald Salahuddin, a former aide to Booker, was indicted on extortion and corruption charges.

A year earlier, newspapers were touting Booker for a run for governor in 2009. Lanny Davis, the Clinton advisor, writing in the Washington Times was thrilled with Mr. Obama's friend and ally, who is in his third year of his four-year term as mayor of Newark, N.J. In 2009, after President Barack Obama became president of the United States, Booker was offered the chance to head the new White House Office of Urban Affairs Policy; Booker turned the offer down citing a commitment to Newark.

February 2008 - The Newark Buildings Manager, Marilyn Gaynor, who served as a political consultant in Booker's campaign, resigned amid a probe of the "use of employee time." Before working for Booker, Gaynor helped run non-profit community organizations. She also worked as an administrative analyst in the administration of former Mayor Sharpe James. (James served simultaneously as a state senator and Mayor of Newark. He was convicted in 2008 of of five counts of fraud.) Gaynor and a deputy, Mauro Jacome, were charged with enlisting city workers to perform renovations on Gaynor's Newark home. They pleaded guilty in October 2009.

NOVEMBER 2009 - Newark councilwoman Dana Rone was convicted last year of obstruction of justice for interfering when a Rutgers-Newark police stopped her nephew for a traffic violation. Her career "began as a public housing and education activist and carried her to the Newark City Council on Mayor Cory Booker’s slate." As of March 2010, she still appealing the December 2007 conviction that barred her from running for public office in the future.

Every single one of the named individuals are Democrats. And this is just one county in New Jersey.