A voter dropping off a ballot outside Red Bank borough hall last October. The drop boxes will again be used this year. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Voters on the Greater Red Bank Green and across New Jersey will have a new option for making their picks in November’s general election: early, in-person voting.
Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon explains the various ways to cast votes this year. (Click to enlarge.)
• The newest of three available options for vote-casting allows, for the first time in state history, in-person, early voting between Saturday, October 23 and Sunday, October 31.
In March, Governor Phil Murphy signed into law a mandate that all 21 counties offer early, in-person voting.
For the general election, early-voting will occur at designated polling stations, but not in all municipalities. Any voter registered in Monmouth County can vote at any of the county’s 10 polling locations, which include the Woman’s Club of Little Silver, at 111 Church Street.
The poll book into which voters enter their signatures on arrival, and the voting machines, will all used digital technology, Monmouth County Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon says in the above video. The touchscreen tech used in the voting machines “is simple and straightforward, just like using a smartphone or computer tablet,” she says.
It also provides a printout of the voter’s selections.
“Every vote will have a secured paper trail,” Hanlon says. “Poll workers familiar with this new technology, which has been vetted and certified by the State of New Jersey, will be available to assist you every step of the way.”
• In addition, voting by mail remains an option for all registered voters, and mail-in ballots are now available.
“Any registered voter can vote by mail for any reason,” Hanlon said in a press release Wednesday. “Every valid vote cast by mail will be included in the election results so residents do not have to worry that their vote will not be counted.”
To vote by mail, voters must first complete a vote-by-mail ballot application, which can be obtained from the county clerk’s elections webpage at MonmouthCountyVotes.com; on the Monmouth County Votes Mobile App; or by visiting the clerk’s elections office in Freehold or the municipal clerk of their hometown.
Applications to vote by mail that are submitted by U.S. Mail must be received by the clerk’s office seven days before an election, or Tuesday, October 26. In-person applications must be submitted by 3 p.m. the day before the election. When applying in person, voters can obtain and cast their mail-in ballot early.
Instructions for completing and returning vote-by-mail ballots are included in the ballot package.
Ballot dropboxes for Red Bank, Fair Haven and Little Silver are located outside their respective borough halls.
• There’s also the traditional option of voting in person on election day at assigned polling locations.
NJ Spotlight has an extensive overview of the voting options and changes here.
For more information regarding the election and its three voting options, go to MonmouthCountyVotes.com or download the free Monmouth County Votes mobile app. Voters with additional questions may call the county election division at 732-431-7790 or email [email protected].
