Jon Corzine, Governor of our fair neighbor/industrial wasteland across the river, New Jersey, may keep his seat for another 4 years, not because of his great performance or massive spending, but because his opponent is fat.

Republican challenger Chris Christie, has managed to mount a formidable campaign to unseat the governor of a solidly liberal state. Yet Christie’s lead in the polls (once at a high of 51.8% to Corzine’s 38.4%) has disappeared in the wake of a controversial attack ad hinting at his portly figure.

The ad accuses Christie, a former US attorney for New Jersey, of “throwing his weight around” several times to avoid traffic tickets. Christie is then shown exiting an SUV roughly the same size as him. The implication is obvious: Christie is a large man, and Jon Corzine intends to make fun of him on television.

Christie has called the ads “silly” and “stupid,” which is a nice way of saying that Corzine hasn’t grown up much since the 7th grade. What’s more disturbing is the fact that these tactics seem to have worked. Since the ad went public in late September, Christie’s has lost his lead of 7 points and the race is now in a dead heat.

In fact, 19% of those polled admitted they would be less likely to vote for Christie because of his weight (imagine the number who wouldn’t admit to it). Has the New Jersey gubernatorial election really turned into a referendum on a candidate’s pant size?