Newark Mayor Cory Booker Says NJ Governor Chris Christie "Vulnerable" to Democratic Challenge in 2013

Newark mayor Cory Booker is deciding whether he'll run for governor of New Jersey against Republican incumbent Chris Christie next year.

"When I analyze the governor's work, I don't want to give him some sort of simplistic, holistic grade," Booker told HuffPost Live.

"When I go out and campaign next year for myself as a gubernatorial candidate or for another gubernatorial candidate should I decide not to run -- when I talk to crowds or to individuals advocating for whoever that candidate is, I'm not going to do it on anything but the issues."

While Booker says he hasn't yet decided if he'll run, it looks like he'll announce his intentions in the next few weeks.

"I am absolutely considering running for governor, as well as giving other options some consideration," he said.

"I am going to be focused on that for the next week to 10 days or so and really come up with a decision that answers my basic question, where do I believe I can make the best difference for the city I love, for the state I love and the nation I pledge my life to," he said.  

Christie, of course, has surged in popularity since his well-regarded response to Hurricane Sandy, which devastated much of the coastline of New Jersey. He visited Washington, D.C. this past week to ask Congress for $30 billion more in emergency relief funds.

Christie was heavily critical of President Obama in the weeks leading up to the hurricane, during the waning days of the presidential election. Christie famously accused Obama of being a poor leader.

But in the aftermath of Sandy, Christie made many appearances with Obama to survey the damage, and he spoke glowingly of the president's commitment to cleaning up the damage.

Democrats expect that Christie's popularity will return back to normal levels before the election late next year, and Booker is counting on that.

"We think to any Democrat Christie is vulnerable, as it should be, because there's a lot of issues in the state he's not falling in line with, from women's issues, environmental issues, from really going in a balanced way," Booker told CNN.

However, election years that don't include a presidential elections usually see low turnout from Democrats and liberal voters who care about those issues, so Booker may be fighting an uphill battle. A recent poll by Rutgers University shows Christie winning in a head-to-head competition between the two politicians, 53 percent to 34 percent.