Back in March, I visited with Fred Schneiderman at his home in Cresskill and listened to him talk about being the only Republican candidate in CD-5 who could beat Josh Gottheimer.

Sure, he didn’t get the “county line” in Bergen, but he didn’t think that mattered all that much, and after all, the process was flawed anyway.

A few weeks after that, the Schneiderman camp boasted about getting a TV commercial up and running before anyone else.

All seemed to be moving forward until Thursday morning – that’s when Schneiderman dropped out of the race.

After reiterating his belief he is the best primary and general election candidate out there, he wrote, “Yet, due to my first priority, my family, I must hereby withdraw my 2022 candidacy.”

He did not elaborate, but he did say he’s “confident” that he will again seek elected office. Later, he spoke of regrouping with “great determination” and running again.

One office apparently on his radar is the U.S. Senate, where the next election is 2024 when Bob Menendez’ term is up.

As for the present, Schneiderman’s exit leaves two main candidates in the race – Nick DeGregorio, who has the county line in Bergen, and Frank Pallotta, who ran in 2020.

Given DeGregorio’s county organization endorsement and Pallotta’s name recognition from his previous run, Schneiderman, clearly, faced a tough road.

Whether that influenced Schneiderman’s decision to drop out is unclear. His name, of course, will remain on the ballot as the deadline for changes has passed.

As for DeGregorio and Pallotta, they have been skirmishing of late over a virtual debate that is scheduled for later today.

The Pallotta campaign declined, saying it wanted a live debate.

This, of course, prompted DeGregorio to take a swipe at Pallotta for not wanting to show up.

There are still a handful of other – and presumably live – campaign forums either scheduled or being put together prior to the June 7 primary.

CD-5 is considered competitive, although redistricting has moved it further east into Bergen, making it more Democratic registration wise.