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POLITICO, the Capitol Hill newspaper and website, is launching a satellite website in New Jersey

(Star-Ledger file photo)

Apparently, The Auditor is getting some new competition.

POLITICO — the national political news website and Capitol Hill newspaper founded in 2007 — announced today that it plans to start new websites in several new states, beginning with New Jersey.

Capital New York, which POLITICO owns, will also be rebranded as POLITICO New York.

"We have decided all expansion will take place under the POLITICO banner in the states and overseas," chief executive Jim Vanderhei wrote in a staff memo. "We will have lots of outposts but all will fall under one name."

POLITICO Europe will also debut in Brussels on April 21, according to Capital New York.

The memo did not give a date for the New Jersey expansion, saying only it will launch "later this year" with a "mix of free and paid content for the state written by reporters with expertise and experience in the state.

"We will create a bureau with the clear mandate to dominate coverage in Trenton and beyond. This process is underway," Vanderhei wrote.

The launch of the New Jersey website will be followed by one in Florida.

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