How to Vote in New Jersey

The pandemic has changed life in New Jersey in many ways including how we vote. For the first time, voters in New Jersey will overwhelmingly cast their ballots by mail in a presidential election. Penny Venetis, a clinical professor of law and the director of the International Human Rights Clinic at Rutgers Law School, answers questions about how to make sure your vote is counted on Nov. 3.

Why is New Jersey doing Vote by Mail?

Voting by mail is a safe and secure way to vote.  Each voter hand marks a paper ballot and then returns it. That hand-marked paper ballot is the official ballot. It is that easy. 

Studies show that in states like Oregon, which have used mail in ballots for over a decade, more people vote, and very few ballots are disqualified, compared to other states where voters use voting machines on a single-day Election Day.

Gov. Murphy's Executive Orders, later codified into law by the legislature, requires that each county send voters registered in that county a mail in ballot. It is more efficient during the pandemic to eliminate the step of having voters ask for a mail in ballot. New Jerseyans are lucky that their government has taken steps to make voting during the pandemic easier.  In other states, like Texas and Georgia, lawmakers have taken drastic measures, including filing multiple lawsuits, to prevent counties from switching to universal vote by mail (the very same process being used in New Jersey).

What should you do if you haven't received your ballot yet?

Voters who have not yet received their paper ballots should go to their county board of elections to get their ballot. 

The sooner voters cast their ballots, the better. It will give counties more time to process votes so we can learn election results earlier. Additionally, voters risk less exposure to COVID-19 if they return their voted paper ballots.

What are the secure ways to return your ballot?

Voters who have completed their ballots can return them using U.S. mail. The return ballot envelope is already pre-paid, so voters do not need to add a stamp to the envelope.  Ballots returned via U.S. mail must be postmarked by November 3, 2020 – Election Day.

Voters may also return their voted ballots to secure ballot return boxes in their county. There are multiple drop boxes in each county. For a list of those drop boxes, call your county clerk, check your mail-in ballot, or visit the NJ.gov voter information portal.

How secure is voting by mail in New Jersey?

Voting by mail is more secure than voting on the computer voting machines used in New Jersey.  The voter hand marks a paper ballot. Nobody can alter that ballot. Paper ballots can be counted, and recounted in the event of a close election.

By contrast, voting computers can malfunction and inadvertently lose votes. Voting computers can also be hacked fairly easily to alter election results.

Does allowing vote by mail lead to an increase in voter participation and why is that?

Voting by mail increases voter participation because the voter has more control over when to vote. The voter can conduct research at home, or by speaking with trusted friends, to determine which candidate to support. The voter can take as much time as needed to complete the ballot. When the ballot is completed, the voter can drop it in the mail or in a number of designated drop boxes in the voter's county. It is easy. 

Voting on Election Day, in person, requires planning. For many voters, it requires taking time away from work and/or family obligations.  It is hard for some voters to make it to the polls on Election Day – someone they love might be sick or there might be a job emergency that requires working late. Voting by mail removes these risk factors.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, voting by mail allows voters to feel secure that they will not be infected while standing in crowded lines, next to strangers, to vote indoors (where the air circulation may not be good). 

What do you do if you want to vote in person in New Jersey on Nov. 3?

Voters in New Jersey who still wish to vote in person can do so. They will not cast their votes on a voting machine, however, unless they have a disability, or have special permission to use a voting machine. Voters who wish to vote in person on Election Day will be given something called a “provisional paper ballot” at the polls. That provisional paper ballot will be counted once the county ensures that the voter did not already cast a vote using their mail-in ballot.

Voters can go to the NJ.gov website to find the list of polling locations in their counties and the designated polling location encompassing the voter's address. Those polling locations are also listed on the back of all mail-in ballots.

Given that we are in a pandemic, it is critical to vote early by returning your mail-in ballot. There is no need to wait until Election Day to vote. We do not know whether the number of COVID-19 cases will continue to rise. We should assume that they will as the weather gets colder, as we move into Election Day in November.