It's pretty much beyond dispute that if Chris Christie knew about his aides' orders to shut down lanes on the George Washington Bridge--or worse, was involved in the decision--it's an impeachable offense. However, assuming that all 24 Democrats vote to remove an impeached Christie from office, they'd need to peel off at least two Republicans to get the required two-thirds majority.
There's another option, however. Christie can be recalled. Back in 1993, the state constitution was amended to provide for recall. From Article 1, section B:
The people reserve unto themselves the power to recall, after at least one year of service, any elected official in this State or representing this State in the United States Congress. The Legislature shall enact laws to provide for such recall elections. Any such laws shall include a provision that a recall election shall be held upon petition of at least 25% of the registered voters in the electoral district of the official sought to be recalled. If legislation to implement this constitutional amendment is not enacted within one year of the adoption of the amendment, the Secretary of State shall, by regulation, implement the constitutional amendment, except that regulations adopted by the Secretary of State shall be superseded by any subsequent legislation consistent with this constitutional amendment governing recall elections. The sufficiency of any statement of reasons or grounds procedurally required shall be a political rather than a judicial question.
The provision allowing for the recall of congressmen and senators is almost certainly void, as it conflicts with the federal Constitution at least for now. But it's still valid for any other elected official in New Jersey--including the governor.
The mechanism for recall elections is in the Uniform Recall Election Law, which is section 19:27A of the New Jersey Statutes. It stipulates that a recall committee comprising at least three members must submit a recall petition no earlier than 50 days before the end of the first year of the targeted official's term, but the election can't take place any earlier than six months before the general or regular election. By my math, this means the earliest an effort to recall Christie can start is sometime around November 30 of this year. Christie officially begins his second term on January 19--the Monday after next.
The committee would have to submit the petition to the Secretary of State, who would have three days to review it. If the secretary accepts the petition, the committee would have a maximum of 320 days to get 25 percent of all registered voters in New Jersey to sign the petition. The Secretary of State would then have 10 days to certify the petition and set a date for the recall. By my math, that means a recall election would have to wait until the summer of 2015 at the earliest. Plus there's another consideration--Christie's lieutenant governor, Kim Guadogno, is also Secretary of State, and hence the state's chief election official.
Given how egregious this affair is, if Christie is involved he has to be gone sooner than later. Is mounting a recall worth the wait if a recall is warranted, or is it best to push for impeachment?