Politics | Barbara Buono NJ Dem Tapped for Vast Task of Unseating Christie Tough fight ahead for Barbara Buono By Rob Quinn Posted Jan 30, 2013 3:36 AM CST Copied In this photograph taken Monday, Jan. 3, 2011, in Trenton, NJ, Sen. Barbara Buono talks during a news conference. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) New Jersey's Democrats have picked somebody for the David-vs.-Goliath task of taking on the man polls show is the country's most popular governor—and possibly its most popular Republican. State Sen. Barbara Buono has won the support of the Democratic Governors' Association and state Democratic groups, making her the presumptive nominee to face Chris Christie in the November election, the Courier Post reports. Newark Mayor Cory Booker has decided to explore a Senate run instead of challenging Christie. "I was always confident the party would come together," Buono says. "This election is too important—it's about having someone who stands up for working New Jerseyans and the working poor who have been forgotten by this governor." But she faces a mammoth task: Christie's popularity soared after his widely praised response to Hurricane Sandy and he is way ahead in fundraising. His war chest will swell further when Mark Zuckerberg hosts a fundraiser for him next month. Read These Next Driver who killed Dixie Chicks founder hears his fate. Bill Gates apologized to his staff, spoke of his affairs. Home Improvement actor is going to jail for more than a year. Charging his phone in a snow-covered car was a fatal mistake. Report an error