New Jersey State Legislature Passes Two Election Bills, Nine Fewer Than Last Year

As of July 30, members of the New Jersey State Legislature, which includes the New Jersey General Assembly and the New Jersey State Senate, have passed two bills related to election administration since the beginning of the year. Two of those two bills have been enacted, with one being enacted during the week of July 24-30. This is nine fewer than this point a year ago. Democrats sponsored both bills. The bills are: 

NJ A5176: Requires periodic reporting of election results on night of primary and general election and until final tally thereafter; appropriates $1.5 million, Assembly Members Reginald Atkins (D), Craig Coughlin (D), Mila Jasey (D), and Benjie Wimberly (D), and Sens. Patrick Diegnan (D), Nellie Pou (D), Shirley Turner (D), and Andrew Zwicker (D).

As amended, this bill directs each county clerk to post an unofficial report detailing the number of ballots counted, the number and type of ballots received, and the number of ballots that remain to be counted by 11:59 pm on the day of the election and by 9 pm each day after, until all ballots are counted and the election is certified, and details exact information to be included in the report for in-person voting, vote by mail, and provisional ballots.

The bill requires district boards of elections to display an unofficial count of the number of votes at each election district and the number of provisional ballots on election day. Requires each county clerk to send the secretary of state the unofficial reports created at the time of posting, and requires the secretary of state to post county by county totals, noting that the totals are an unofficial tally. Directs the secretary of state to create uniform guidelines and a template for the tally reports.

More so, it also requires the county clerk, beginning on the seventh day after the election, to post an unofficial report of provisional ballots received, and to update the report by 9 pm each day until all eligible provisional ballots have been counted.

From July 24-30, legislators passed zero bills related to election administration nationally. As of July 30, Texas legislators have passed the most bills this year with 35, while Alaska, Missouri, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin legislators have passed the fewest bills with zero. The state with the most enacted bills is Texas with 33, while six states have enacted none.

The New Jersey State Legislature is scheduled to be in session from Jan. 10 to Dec. 31 this year. In 2022, New Jersey legislators passed 11 election-related bills, 10 in the state House and one in the state Senate. All 11 bills were enacted into law. New Jersey is a Democratic trifecta, meaning Democrats control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature. 

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