Bill Clinton will visit to the Garden State in advance of the June 7 primary
WASHINGTON -- Former President Bill Clinton is returning to New Jersey on Friday, less than two weeks before the state's June 7 primary that could provide Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton with a first-ballot nomination for president.
The ex-president is scheduled to campaign in Middlesex County, the Hillary Clinton campaign announced Wednesday. More details will be released soon.
Both President Clinton and daughter Chelsea have campaigned in the state on behalf of Hillary Clinton, who leads in the delegate count of the Democratic presidential nomination.
Hillary Clinton is just 78 delegates short of the 2,383 she needs to win the Democratic presidential nomination, according to the Associated Press. New Jersey will send 142 delegates to the party's national convention in Philadelphia in July.
Bill Clinton jabs at Trump in N.J. speech
Clinton led her Democratic rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, 54 percent to 40 percent, in a Quinnipiac University poll of likely Democratic primary voters.
President Clinton made two stops in New Jersey on May 13.
His Paterson address was delayed because of an overturned tractor-trailer on the Tappan Zee Bridge. When he arrived, he took aim at presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, criticizing his plan to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and to ban Muslims from entering the country.
"We need the good freedom-loving, terror-hating Muslim-Americans to help us to lead the fight," Clinton said. "We gotta live together and be citizens, together. We gotta protect everybody's rights: Religious rights, women's rights, voting rights and labor rights. We gotta prove to that we can do this together."
In Ewing, he took another swing at Trump.
"If you believe things should be made as they once were -- which is essentially, 'Make America Great Again' -- remember this: It wasn't so great for a lot of people the way things once were," Clinton said.
Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook