Somerset County Clerk Steve Peter began mailing the initial 29,860 primary 2024 ballots to eligible voters who requested them on April 20.
Eligible voters for the June 4 Democratic and Republican primaries may request ballots by mail from the Clerk’s office until Tuesday, May 28. Mail-in ballots will continue to be available for in-person requests through 3 p.m. on Monday, June 3.
“There is great interest for this year’s presidential primaries, and we want to be sure that every eligible voter who wants to cast their ballot has the ability to do so easily and fairly,” Somerset County Clerk Steve Peter said. “Mail-in ballots are a safe, secure, and convenient way to submit a ballot for all elections, and my office is here to help all eligible voters who wish to vote by mail.”
Ballots for the 2024 Democratic primary will appear different than voters are accustomed to due to a recent court case that determined the “county line” could not be used for the Democratic contest while it will be used for the Republican voters, according to a press release through Somerset County Clerk’s Office. The Democratic ballot will be designed in an “office block” style where candidates will be arranged according to the office they are seeking. For instance, all presidential candidates will be listed in one “block,” then all US. Senate candidates, U.S. House candidates, county candidates, and local candidates.
The 29,860 ballots mailed out are to Republican and Democratic Party voters who have previously requested to receive the ballots. These voters must vote by mail and are not eligible to vote in-person on a machine for this election. Voters may opt-out of receiving mail in ballots at any time, but requests received now will first apply to the general election in November and not the June 2024 primary.
Unaffiliated and “third” party voters who have requested mail-in ballots for all elections will not automatically receive a ballot for the June 2024 election as they are not currently eligible. Only registered Democrats and Republicans are eligible to vote in their respective primaries. Unaffiliated voters who are not currently registered with any political party may choose to register as a Republican or a Democrat and vote in that party’s 2024 primary.
Mail in ballots can be submitted in three ways:
- Posted by U.S. Mail and postmarked before 8 p.m. on June 4;
- Placed in a Secure Drop Box (http://soconj.gov/dropbox) before 8 p.m. on June 4, 2024; or
- Brought in-person to the Somerset County Board of Elections, 20 Grove Street, Somerville during office hours.
All information regarding vote by mail can be found on the Election Division section of the Clerk’s website at https://soconj.gov/clerk. If a voter’s question is not answered on that page they can call (908) 231-7504 or email [email protected].
Voters who have not requested a mail-in ballot may also vote in-person at any of six early voting locations from May 29 to June 2, 2024, or in-person at their assigned polling place on June 4. A list of polling places and hours of operation is available at http://soconj.gov/pollingplace.