The campaign-style mailers began turning up last month in some of New Jersey’s toniest towns, including Princeton, Montclair and Westfield. The attack ads bore no return address and no “paid for by” disclaimers, a telltale sign of a shadowy strategy in a state known for its mastery of the political dark arts.
But the target of the mailers — Matthew J. Platkin, New Jersey’s outgoing attorney general — was not running for office. And his last day on the job is Tuesday, leaving many puzzled by the tactic and its timing.
“Time and again, Platkin failed New Jersey,” one of the anonymous mailers claimed.
“Matt Platkin: a lawyer who doesn’t know the law,” another stated.
Mr. Platkin, 39, has joined with other Democratic attorneys general to sue the Trump administration 45 times, an effort that has helped the state recoup millions of dollars and established New Jersey as a leader in the fight to protect immigrant rights.
Yet some of his biggest detractors are fellow Democrats, who have been quick to highlight his office’s missteps in the four years he has been attorney general.
The dynamic has underscored the intraparty tension that has roiled Trenton since Robert Menendez, New Jersey’s former senator, was convicted of an elaborate bribery plot in a trial that reinforced the state’s reputation as a place where politicians are willing to peddle their power to enrich themselves and their friends.
The scandal ushered in anti-corruption efforts aimed at taming the strength of Democratic power brokers like Mr. Menendez and electing reform-minded candidates. But the ad campaign against Mr. Platkin, as he is walking out the door, is a reminder of the hurdles those seeking to fundamentally shift the state’s political paradigm still face…
Mr. Kim’s lawsuit against the state’s election ballot led to a new design, requiring candidates running for the same office to be grouped together and diminishing the advantage of those endorsed by local party leaders. It remains to be seen whether it will permanently alter the state’s political culture.
“It was an earthquake that definitely left cracks in the wall,” said Julia Sass Rubin, an associate dean at Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. “But the wall is still there, for now.”
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On Friday, a fresh round of anti-Platkin placards arrived in mailboxes, suggesting the sender’s desire to tarnish the attorney general’s reputation could have more to do with prosecution decisions facing the incoming administration in the coming months.
“It is a warning to others,” Ms. Rubin said.