My slogan for New Jersey

My Slogan for New Jersey

New Jersey: Gateway to America


May 7, 2006
New Jersey's Slogan Goes From New to Stale
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Associated Press
TRENTON, May 6 — New Jersey officials have said the new state slogan, "Come See for Yourself," would highlight the Garden State's true beauty.
It turns out, however, that at least one other state already had that idea.
State tourism officials said they canned the slogan after it failed to pass legal muster because some states, including West Virginia, have used it in the past.
"We are proceeding without the slogan," Karen Wolfe, a spokeswoman for the state's Commerce, Economic Growth and Tourism Commission, was quoted as saying in The Press of Atlantic City's Saturday issue. "We will revisit the next steps at the end of the year."
Former Gov. Richard J. Codey unveiled the slogan with great fanfare at a January news conference, just days before he left office.
Mr. Codey, who remains State Senate president, said at the time that the state's catchphrase "should hint at our true beauty."
The slogan was the top choice among 11,227 telephone and online votes cast by residents for five final entries in a statewide contest.
But at an annual tourism conference in Cape May County more than a week ago, the slogan was absent from state promotional materials.
Tourism officials say West Virginia used the phrase in some previous promotions, but now uses "West Virginia: Wild and Wonderful."
The slogan resulted from Mr. Codey's appeal in October for ideas after he rejected a marketing company's proposal for which the state paid about $250,000. He said that slogan, "New Jersey: We'll Win You Over," was negative and reminded him of his own self-deprecating pitch when he asked girls out on dates.


As I have lived in New Jersey for more than two years now, I feel I have the perfect state slogan: Gateway to America.

It’s catchy and happens to be true, as NJ is the a stronghold of immigrants, both now and historically, and is the state closest to Ellis Island. It is also is the state through which visitors to New York City must pass, more often than not, if they want to reach the American mainland.