State profile: New Jersey

New Jersey used to be a marginal state, but in recent years it has become increasingly safe, if not a dead cert, for the Democrats.

It voted heavily for Al Gore in 2000, and a year later elected a Democratic governor, after Republican Governor Christie Todd Whitman was appointed head of the Environmental Protection Agency.

The state suffered a shock when Ms Whitman's replacement, Governor James McGreevey, announced on 12 August 2004 that he was resigning.

The married politician revealed that he had engaged in an adulterous homosexual affair.

New Jersey, "the Garden State", has a reputation for not being pretty to look at.

Chemical plants line many of the state's substantial number of highways.

KEY FACTS Population: 8,414,350 (ranked 9 among states) Governor: James McGreevey (D) (Announced resignation on 12 August) Electoral college votes: 15

Nevertheless, Bruce Springsteen's home does offer amazing diversity: within its borders are the skyscrapers of Newark, the beaches of Cape May and the mountains of the Appalachian range.

It is one of the most densely populated in the US, with most of the population living close to New York City or Philadelphia. New Jersey also has a large and diverse immigrant population.

2003 CONGRESS House of Representatives: 7 Democrat, 6 Republican Senate: 2 Democrat

The 1990s brought prosperity to the area and since 2001 the state's economy has been generating more new jobs than either next-door New York or Pennsylvania.

Atlantic City takes as much from gambling as Las Vegas and the state is home to major league basketball, hockey and football franchises.

VOTING RECORD 2000: Bush 40%, Gore 56% 1996: Clinton 54%, Dole 36% 1992: Clinton 43%, Bush 41%, Perot 16%

New Jersey is home to Princeton University and exceptionally wealthy areas such as Morris County, with some of the highest incomes in the nation. But the state also has its blighted and troubled districts like the tenth, and old industrial cities such as Paterson.