
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, January 13, 1994                   TAG: 9401130127
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: NEWARK, N.J.                                LENGTH: Short

PROBE OF ALLEGATIONS IN N.J. ELECTION DROPPED

Federal and state prosecutors are dropping their probes into explosive comments that Democrats and black clergy were paid to keep minorities away from the polls in the gubernatorial election.

U.S. Attorney Michael Chertoff said Wednesday that an exhaustive two-month investigation turned up no evidence to support comments made, then retracted, by Ed Rollins, the former campaign manager for Republican Gov.-elect Christie Whitman.

State and federal teams shared information but reached independent conclusions, Chertoff said.

Whitman, who had immediately branded Rollins a liar, said she was relieved the investigation was over.

She will succeed Gov. Jim Florio, a Democrat, on Tuesday. She defeated Florio by just 26,093 votes out of more than 2.5 million cast, the second-closest margin in state history.

Rollins issued a brief statement from his Washington office Wednesday, apologizing to Whitman, the black community and the clergy.

- Associated Press

by CNB