By Matt Arco and Brent Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

What do you call it when hundreds of New Jersey's politicians and business leaders take the same, crowded, alcohol-filled train to Washington D.C.?

One of the Garden State's oldest, weirdest, and often-derided political traditions.

Thursday marks the 80th annual Walk to Washington, also known as "the Chamber train," a trip along the Northeast Corridor rail line to the nation's capital sponsored by the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce. The attendees — state lawmakers, business people, lobbyists, and political candidates — all cram into the same Amtrak train en route to dinner at a D.C. hotel with the the state's members of Congress. Gov. Chris Christie will be the keynote speaker at the dinner.

Here is a closer look at the event.

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What's in a name?

Yes, we know: A train trip is called "The Walk to Washington." But it's named that because some riders over the years have made it a goal to walk all the cars in the four-hour trip.

That's not easy: The aisles are filled with people sipping cocktails from the dining car and trying to crouch into corners to talk shop, discuss issues facing the state, and sometimes make political deals.

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Not everyone is a fan.

For years, critics have accused the trip of representing the worst in New Jersey politics: providing a place where special interest groups that can afford the $700 price of the ticket are given face-to-face access with politicians for hours. That's why the event has also earned a few derisive nicknames: the "Lobbyists' Express" and the "schmooze cruise." It was even the subject of a "60 Minutes" segment in the 1990s.

And this year, the event is facing extra scrutiny in the wake of the 2016 presidential election, in which Donald Trump was elected president in which he ran on a platform vowing to "drain the swamp" of lobbyists and career politicians in Washington. Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders campaigned on a similar message.

But defenders say the chamber train is a place where politicians can speak to industry leaders about how to improve New Jersey.

"I think it's one of the best trips every year," state Assembly Minority Leader Lou Greenwald (D-Camden) said. "I come back every year with new contacts, new relationships, and new ideas."

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Why the whole thing started ...

New Jersey's is the only state chamber of commerce in the U.S. to hold an event like this, chartering a train to carry its members to D.C.

It began in the 1930s when there was a dinner in Newark honoring the state's congressional delegation. But as the story goes, some of the federal lawmakers did not want to make the trek back home for it. So instead, the chamber came to D.C. instead, beginning in 1937.

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History is being made.

For the first time in the event's history, a cardinal of the Catholic church will be on the train. Cardinal Joseph Tobin, the newly installed archbishop of the Newark Diocese, will also deliver the convocation at the dinner.

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Who's attending?

More than 900 people are registered to attend the dinner in D.C. Most of them will take the train, organizers said.

About 40 of the 120 members of the state Legislature are expected to be on the train.

At least 10 of New Jersey's 12 members of Congress will be at the dinner. U.S. Reps. Frank LoBiondo (R-2nd Dist.) and Albio Siries (D-8th Dist.) are unsure if they can attend, organizers said.

More than 35 members of the media have been credentialed to ride the train. They often have to contort their torsos to find space to interview lawmakers.

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Christie is back.

After skipping last year's event, Christie will be back to deliver a speech at the dinner Thursday night at the Marriott Wardman Park hotel in D.C.

Christie has spoken at the dinner in all but two years. He missed the first Walk to Washington of his governorship, in 2010, because of a dispute with the Chamber. Then, he skipped last year's dinner, which fell shortly after he ended his presidential campaign. The day after the dinner, he made national headlines by endorsing Trump's presidential campaign.

But you won't find him on the train. Christie always makes his own way to D.C. for the event.

This will be his final appearance at the dinner as governor. Christie leaves office next January and is currently one of the the most unpopular governors in New Jersey's modern times, carrying approval ratings as low as 17 percent.

Thursday also marks his second trip to D.C. this week. On Tuesday, he and First Lady Mary Pat had lunch at the White House with Trump, a longtime friend.

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Booker and Menendez will speak.

Also scheduled to speak at the dinner are New Jersey's two U.S. senators, Cory Booker and Robert Menendez, both Democrats, and U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.), the congressman who has represented the state the longest, since 1981.

Like Christie, Booker missed last year's dinner — to campaign with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in South Carolina.

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Will there be little talk of the governor's race?

New Jersey is in the midst of a crowded, often contentious governor's race, with more than a dozen candidates angling to succeed Christie. And usually, the chamber train is an opportunity for gubernatorial contenders to network, less than five months before primary elections.

But only a few of the hopefuls are scheduled to be on the train. That includes two Democratic contenders: former Goldman Sachs banking executive Phil Murphy, the front-runner for the party's nomination, and state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union).

As for other Democrats? Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex) said he will instead be at a Port Authority hearing.

"I'm spending my time in New Jersey with the men and women who will make a decision in June about who the Democratic nominee will be," Wisniewski said.

And former U.S. Treasury official Jim Johnson announced he will forgo the trip, donate the cost of two tickets to a Trenton charity, and hold an event in Newark before riders depart in which he will release his proposal for ethics and electoral reform in the state.

“The Walk to Washington has done nothing benefit the people of New Jersey," Johnson said in a statement Wednesday. "While billed as a business trip, the Walk is another opportunity for lobbyists to rub elbows and curry favor with elected officials."

And Republicans? It's uncertain if Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli (R-Somerset), who is battling cancer, will attend. Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno won't be there, because she needs to stay in New Jersey to prevent Democrats from being sworn in as acting governor because Christie will be in D.C. Another GOP contender, businessman Joseph Rullo, will skip, as well.

Also missing will be Joe Piscopo, the comedian who is considering running as either a Republican or an independent. Piscopo, who hosts a morning-drive radio show, said he couldn't make the trip fit his schedule.

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Expect protests, possibly against Trump.

Protestors often line up throughout Penn Station in Newark as riders board the train. In recent years, they've spoken out on health care issues and transportation funding. This year, it'd be no surprise to see some jeering Trump, whose actions and policies in his first few weeks as president have sparked protests around the country and arguments among lawmakers.

One planned protest: Advocacy group New Jersey Citizen Action will greet attendees at every stop in New Jersey to urge them to oppose the plan by Trump and Republicans in Congress to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare.

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All the rest

• The cost to attend just the dinner: $369 for non-Chamber members, $289 for members.

• There are 15 cars in this year's train, two more than last year.

• People can board the train at seven stops along three states: Newark; Edison; New Brunswick; Trenton; Philadelphia; and Wilmington, Del.