Well, tonight, Republicans have one last candidate in the crowded race for governor.

Former GOP state Senator Ed Durr has dropped his bid for the party's nomination as first reported by NJ Globe Dirt had the signatures he needed to get on the ballot, but not the cash.

The South Jersey truck driver who ousted then-Senate President Steve Sweeney four years ago, said he couldn't raise enough money to qualify for matching funds and is instead endorsing former radio host Bill Spadina in the race, who, along with candidate Jack generally each met separately with President Trump this weekend at his Bedminster golf course, vying for his coveted endorsement, which could make or break their campaigns.

This is all as Republicans push for a red wave in New Jersey and as other GOP gubernatorial hopefuls made their case this weekend at the annual GOP leadership Summit in Atlantic City.

Senior correspondent Joanna Gaga's was there.

I'm here to tell you.

All right, now we're winning this year.

I'm telling you right now.

Former assemblyman and three PEAT candidate for governor Jack Chiu at a rally was nothing short of confident in front of this audience on Friday at the annual GOP leadership summit in Atlantic City.

He was one of four Republican gubernatorial candidates interviewed on the issues driving their campaigns.

Property taxes, doing business on Main Street, public safety, public education, and our common sense conservative approach to how to solve those problems.

The first thing I'm going to do is end this ridiculous mandate that you actually say to towns, This is how many units you put in town.

Candidate Senator Jon Bramnick saying he'd take the issue back to the courts and look for other incentive programs to help redevelop urban housing.

The urban mayors love the fact we used to have regional contribution agreements, meaning that if they said to summit, you need 300 units, you could transfer half of those units by giving the city of New York, for example, money and they would rehab existing existing structures.

Former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Shack was a late comer to the campaign trail who's trying to make a name for himself.

I have fixed values and I fixed beliefs.

I believe parents should be parents.

I believe in school choice.

We need to reform the pension system.

And most importantly, we need term limits because it's only people who sit in the legislature who actually feel like they can keep doing this to you without any kind of retribution.

They keep doing the same thing over and over.

Former one term state Senator Ed Dirk did speak as a candidate this weekend, but announced today he's ending his campaign and endorsing former radio talk show host Bill Cepeda, who notably was absent in AC this weekend, which was pointed out by one moderator.

If you're running for governor statewide and you do not come to the New Jersey GOP leadership summit, it's disqualifying.

Many Senate and Assembly Republicans showed up throughout the weekend long summit.

They noted the palpable energy within the party spurred by President Trump back in the White House and narrowing margins in the last presidential and gubernatorial elections.

And the crowd went wild when former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy spoke about the issues they're campaigning on.

That there are two genders, that fossil fuels are a requirement for human prosperity, that reverse racism is racism, that an open border is not a border, that parents should determine the education of their children, that the nuclear family is not a bad word.

It is the greatest form of governance known to mankind that capitalism is the best system.

We have to lift us up from poverty.

We certainly need to go in the Republican direction going forward.

For the last eight years of this, governor has increased spending more than we can pay.

Probably we going to find that out of this budget cycle and this next fiscal year.

I mean, the budget is up 68% as eight years as it as introduced by this government.

The overwhelming message from Republicans here is that they believe this is their year to win not just the governorship, but to take back at least one of the branches of the legislature, which they haven't held since 2001.

If I win and we don't have a Republican majority in the legislature, I'm going to consider this campaign in part a failure.

I'm not just talking about the legislature either.

We've got important county races all around the state and municipal races and Board of Education races.

We're seeing a lot of backlash.

We're seeing people go, wait a second, you are going to charge us based on income potentially for utilities.

You have an energy master plan that could collapse our entire grid.

You're doing social policies that are so far out there that, you know, it doesn't resonate.

And I think there is a true tide where New Jersey is now a state in play nationally to turn red.

It's not something that happens overnight.

President Trump's victory, winning the popular vote in the country, winning 12 of New Jersey's 21 counties, winning Passaic County, opening up CD nine as a competitive race for 26.

Republican State Committee Chair Bob Huggins says that makes New Jersey a swing state.

For NJ Spotlight News, I'm Joanna Gaddis.