New Jersey's gubernatorial election is less than a year away. Governor Christie announced his re-election bid in the midst a 70 percent approval rates following Sandy. Democratic hopes of unseating Christie have so far rested on Newark Mayor Cory Booker, whose political ambitions have been the focus of speculation for several weeks.

But Booker's rising political star tends to be brightest outside Newark, where he has been embroiled in one controversy after another over his two terms. 

Booker lost a very public — and ugly — battle over filling a vacant seat on the city council Tuesday when a court ruled he could not cast the deciding vote.

As WNYC’s Bob Hennelly notes, Booker has problems in Newark that could hobble a Democratic unity in a future run.

“He came in with tremendous expectations that he was going to bring people together,” Hennelly told WNYC’s Amy Eddings. “And now Newark is more fractious than ever.”

Listen to Amy Edding's full interview with Bob Hennelly above.