© 2020 by NJ 11th for Change, Inc.

FAQs
for the November 3, 2020
GENERAL ELECTION

The General Election voting process in NJ will be similar to the system implemented for the July primary election, but some crucial details are new. The FAQs below have been updated and fact-checked to reflect the August 14 Executive Order and the three legislative bills passed on August 27, 2020. NJ 11th for Change will continue to update the FAQs as new information becomes available.

In the interest of providing accurate information to the general public, we urge members to share the link to this FAQ page
with their friends, family, and neighbors, as well as in other community forums.

Read the August 14 Executive Order.

Voter Protection Hotline: 1-877-NJ-VOTER

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What offices are up for election in November 2020?

PRESIDENT
U.S. SENATE
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
COUNTY CLERK
AT-LARGE FREEHOLDERS
DISTRICT FREEHOLDER
VARIOUS MUNICIPAL POSITIONS (varies by town)

Will the general election be held mostly through VOTE BY MAIL?

YES. To reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission, the State of New Jersey is encouraging voters to vote by mail rather than voting at in-person polling places. The state will send a ballot to all active registered voters automatically. A reduced number of in-person polling places will be open.

What does “vote by mail” mean?

Vote by mail (VBM) is a well-established system that has been used for over 150 years.
Voters are mailed a paper ballot, which they fill out and return to their local Board of Elections to be counted.
A vote-by-mail ballot is the same thing as an “absentee ballot” or a “mail-in ballot.”
The return postage for your ballots is prepaid. You will not need to add a postage stamp.

Am I registered? What do I need to know about registration?

How do I check if I’m registered? Click here.
Can I register online? YES! As of September 4, voters can register online! Visit voter.svrs.nj.gov/register.
What is the registration deadline? Tuesday, October 13. However, if you need to register or update your registration by mail, we advise that you do so immediately because the post office is experiencing a slow-down in services. It is prudent to leave plenty of time for
- your clerk's office to receive your registration form by mail
- your clerk's office to process your registration
- your clerk's office mail you a ballot at your current address
- you to complete your ballot and submit it
- your completed ballot to arrive at the Board of Elections
- you to confirm (if you wish) that your ballot was received, and request a replacement ballot if it was not.
How do I register by mail? You can find the registration form for your county here. Print it, fill it out, and mail it in.
What if I don't have a printer? County Clerks' offices generally stock municipal buildings, town halls, and public libraries with voter registration forms; vote-by-mail ballot request forms may also be available at these locations. Call them or your County Clerk (contact info at the end of these FAQs) to find out where in your town you can get them.
If I am on parole or probation, can I register to vote? Formerly incarcerated people on parole or probation are allowed to register and vote.

What is an “active” registered voter? What would make someone “inactive”? What does an inactive voter need to do if they want to vote in this election?

An “inactive” voter is a person whose election mail (e.g., a sample ballot) was returned back to the County as undeliverable from the post office.
If an “inactive” voter votes in an election within the span of two federal elections, they become “active” again.
A voter tagged as “inactive” is removed from the system if they do not vote over a span of two federal elections.
Inactive voters CAN vote by submitting a ballot request form or voting provisionally on election day.

What if I just moved to a new address?

If I am already registered at my old address, do I need to re-register? YES! Whether you have moved to a new town or just to a new street address within the same town, you need to re-register with your new address. You can find the registration form for your county here. In section #1, check off the box that says "Address Change."
Can this be done by phone or online? YES! As of September 4, voters can change their address online! Visit voter.svrs.nj.gov/register.
What is the deadline for making an address change? The deadline is October 13. We strongly advise doing it as early as possible rather than waiting until the deadline, to allow for slower-than-normal mail delivery.

Where should college students register? What else do students and young voters need to know?

A short guide for college-student voters and other young voters is available here.
Students may have the option to register from a college address or a parent's address. There may be good reasons for registering and voting at either residence. Some voters base their decision on which location gives their vote the most impact (if, for example, you go to college in a swing state, you may prefer to vote there).
Because of COVID-19, there is a strong chance that many states may conduct this election almost entirely through vote-by-mail. If that is the case, you will be mailed a ballot at the address you provide(d) as a mailing address when you register(ed) to vote. Make sure your mailing address is current, and that you will be able to receive your ballot there or have it forwarded to you promptly and securely by someone you trust!
If you will be living on campus / at your college address:
- You may wish to vote in the state where your college is located. If so, please investigate the registration process for that state, and what you have to do to get a vote-by-mail ballot. Some states may send them out automatically; others may require you to submit a request.
- You may wish to vote in your home state. If so, please investigate the registration process for that state, AND find out what you need to do in order to get a vote-by-mail ballot. (If your home state is NJ, of course, we've got all that information for you here in these FAQs!)
If you will be remote-learning from home rather than on campus:
- You may wish to register to vote in your home state, using your home address.
- You may wish to register to vote in the state where your college is located. If you choose this option, be sure to investigate the rules for that state. Some states may not allow out-of-state college students to vote if they are not living on campus this semester. If they do, however, please find out what is necessary to receive a vote-by-mail ballot, and make arrangements to have your ballot forwarded to you by the U.S. Post Office or by someone you know. DO THIS RIGHT AWAY to allow for significant delays at every step of the process.
Where can I drop off my ballot? You can drop your ballot in the mail (leave plenty of time!), you can bring it to your polling place on Election Day, or you can put it into a dropbox. College campuses will be the site of many dropboxes; more details to come soon.
To begin your research into states other than New Jersey, check out vote.org. You can check your registration status in any state at the National Association of Secretaries of State.
You cannot have a friend, roommate, or parent fill out your ballot and submit it for you. If a vote-by-mail ballot arrives at an address where you are not currently living, you will have to make arrangements to get a ballot sent to your current location. Process and policies may vary by state.
What if I don't have a printer to print out registration forms or ballot request forms?
- County Clerk's offices generally stock municipal buildings, town halls, and pubic libraries with voter registration forms; vote-by-mail ballot request forms may also be available at these locations. Call them or your County Clerk (contact info at the end of these FAQs) to find out where in your town you can get them.
- Starting September 4, 2020, New Jerseyans can register to vote online! We will provide links and details here when they become available.

What if I am a registered NJ voter who lives overseas?

Overseas voters can go to the FAQ page for DemocratsAbroad.og for detailed guidance, or contact their County Clerk's office.

How secure is Vote by Mail?

VERY secure! Vote by Mail has been used by our military since the Civil War, and five states (Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah) conduct elections exclusively by mail.
What about the reports of a nationwide slow-down in mail delivery? We strongly advise that voters do things as early as possible, from sending in registrations and ballot requests to returning your marked ballot. Once you have your ballot, fill it out and return it right away; then track it here. You can also return it in a ballot drop box or in person at your clerk's office or Board of Elections office, to reduce the burden on the United States Postal Service.
These are some of the safeguards involved in the process:
- Your ballot is prepared and mailed to you by a government official.
- It is delivered to you by a sworn federal postal worker.
- You fill out your ballot, place it in the certification envelope, and seal it.
- You sign the front of the certification envelope. The signature must match the one on file at the Board of Elections; otherwise, your ballot will not be counted. (If that happens, you will be alerted so you can solve the problem — called "curing your ballot.")
- You place the signed certification envelope inside the return envelope, and seal that.
- You may return your ballot using the United States Postal Service to deliver the ballot to the county government; you may deliver it in person to your Board of Elections; or you may drop it in one of your county’s secure dropboxes (see photo).
  - Dropboxes are under 24-hour video surveillance.
  - Dropboxes are bolted into concrete.
  - Each dropbox can be opened/closed only with a unique set of keys for that specific mailbox. Only the Board of Elections (not the United States Postal Service) has access to those keys.
  - Employees of the Board of Elections pick up ballots from each dropbox at least once each day.
  - There is an inner locked box that holds the ballots that the employees doing pick up can not unlock. That is swapped out for an empty one and the still-locked box full of ballots is brought back to the Board of Elections where a bipartisan team of Board Workers unlocks it and removes the ballots for processing.
- You may also have your sealed ballot hand-delivered by another person. That person must fill in the "bearer" portion on the outside of the return ballot before taking it from you, and they must sign the county's bearer book, to maintain the chain of custody. Bearers may hand-deliver no more than THREE ballots for other voters during any one election. A candidate running in the current election may not serve as a bearer.
- Every ballot has a unique barcode that is scanned once it is received.
- Vote-by-Mail ballots will be opened at a pre-announced location.
- The ballot-opening process will be video streamed to a public viewing room, where people can challenge any ballots they feel to be invalid.
- The four members of the Board of Election — which consists of two Republicans and two Democrats — make decisions on challenges.
- Your signature, displayed on the certification envelope containing the ballot, is verified to match the signature from your on-file voter registration — just as it would be at your polling place.
- If the signature matches, and there is no challenge from the public, then the certification flap with your name on it is torn off (so your voting choices remain anonymous) and the envelope containing your ballot remains sealed, ready to be opened when vote-counting begins.
- A signature appeals process was developed for the July 7 primary election and worked with great effectiveness. An expanded version of the same process will be used for the November general election. See the questions below for more details.
If you see a problem, you can call the Voter Protection Hotline at 1-877-NJ-VOTER.

When will I receive my ballot in the mail?

All County Clerks have an October 5 deadline for sending ballots to voters. Some counties are sending ballots much earlier.
If you do not receive your ballot during the second week of October, contact your county clerk right away! (Essex County suggests that Essex voters call their clerk's office if a ballot hasn't arrived by October 5.) Contact information for county clerks within our Congressional District (CD11) is included at the end of this FAQ page.
Sample ballots will not be mailed in advance of the actual ballots. Information about where to find sample ballots online will be included in a mailing to be sent no later than October 23. These FAQs will be updated to include links as they become available. So far, we have:
- Sample ballots for Essex County
- Sample ballots for Morris County

What should I do if I have not received a VBM ballot, if my ballot has been lost or destroyed, or if I made a mistake while marking it?

If you are entitled to a ballot but do not receive one, please take steps to get one right away. (Essex County suggests that Essex voters call their clerk's office if a ballot hasn't arrived by October 5. Other counties may be a little earlier or later, but be sure to check by Friday, October 9 in case there is a problem with your registration status; the deadline for registering to vote is Tuesday, October 13.)
You may request a replacement ballot. Contact your county clerk for the best way to do so. They will advise you on how to make your request and receive a ballot in time to send in your vote. If time is too tight, they may advise that you come in to the clerk's office, or use a polling place to vote in person instead.
In some counties, you may hand-deliver your vote-by-mail application (dates will vary from county to county). You will receive your ballot on the spot.
- See the county-by-county section at the end of this document for information about your county's policy, or call your Clerk's office.
If you do not receive a ballot in time, you may vote in person at your polling place using a provisional ballot.

What do I do when I receive my ballot in the mail?

You can watch this video for a step-by-step demonstration of how to use your ballot.
Fill out your ballot and seal it according to the instructions printed on it, using blue or black ink.
Be sure to sign your ballot the way you usually sign the check-in book at your polling place.
Make note of the “ID” number above the barcode on the back of the return envelope. This is your unique Voter ID number, and you can use it later to confirm here that your ballot has been received.
Return your ballot.
If you need help understanding your ballot or are having trouble participating in this election, don’t hesitate to contact your County Clerk or your county’s Board of Elections. (Contact information is available at the end of this FAQ page.)

How and when do I return my Vote-by-Mail ballot?

There’s no reason to wait! You may return your VBM ballot as soon as you receive it and fill it out.
There are several ways to return your VBM ballot.
- Return your ballot through the United States Postal Service (USPS).
- Return your ballot by dropbox.
- Return your ballot at your polling place on Election Day (November 3).
- Return your ballot to your county's Board of Elections office. See the end of this FAQ for information about each county's office.
See below for more details about each of these methods.

How do I return my Vote-by-Mail ballot through the United States Postal Service?

You may use the United States Post Office to return your VBM ballot via your regular mail carrier, through a public USPS mailbox, or at a USPS post office.
You do not need to add a stamp. All return postage is prepaid.
Ballots sent by mail and postmarked on or before 8 p.m. on Election Day (November 3) will be counted as long as they arrive at the Board of Elections within a certain amount of time. The governor's executive order stated that this deadline was 7 days after the election (November 10); the recently plassed legislation specified 6 days (November 9). We will update this FAQ when this ambiguity is resolved.
Ballots that lack a postmark due to USPS machinery malfunction will be counted as long as they are received by the Board of Elections within 48 hours of poll-closing (by 8 p.m. on November 5). They will be accepted under the presumption that arrival within this window means they must have been put in the mail before the postmark deadline.
We anticipate delays in USPS mail delivery, so we advise mailing your ballot well in advance of the November 3 postmark deadline to be sure it is received in time, and so you can track your vote.
If you see a problem, call the Voter Protection Hotline at 1-877-NJ-VOTER.

How do I return my Vote-by-Mail ballot by dropbox?

Voters may return their ballots through election dropboxes 24/7. The boxes are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The deadline for putting your ballot into a dropbox is 8:00 p.m. on Election Day (November 3). Dropboxes look like a USPS blue mailbox, but are red, white and blue and are marked “Official Ballot Drop Box.” See photo below.
There will be at least 10 dropboxes in each county and at least 1 in every municipality with a population of 5,000 or more, to the extent possible.
Dropboxes will be installed at secure locations in each county. All dropboxes are outdoors and under surveillance 24/7, bolted into the concrete pavement.
Ballots will be picked up at least once each day by Board of Elections staff members and delivered to the BOE following proper security protocols.
County Boards of Election will decide where dropboxes are to be installed. They are instructed to place them, to the best of their abilities, based on geographic location and population density to best serve the voters of their counties. Municipal clerks' offices (in towns with populations over 5,000), County Clerks' offices, and college campuses will be among the locations.
You will be notified of specific dropbox locations through an informational mailing that your County Clerk/Board of Elections must send no later than October 23. As locations are published, we will share them here. Currently, the following have been publicly announced:
- Essex County will have 25 dropboxes; list here. Boxes are expected to be installed by Friday, September 18. Several locations not yet on the list will be added in Newark; those boxes will be installed during the week of September 21.
- Morris County will have 15 dropboxes; list here.
- Passaic County dropbox announcements do not yet seem to be complete. For current listings, click here.
- Sussex County will have 11 dropboxes; list here. Boxes will be installed and available on or about October 5.
Use a dropbox in the county where you are registered. If your ballot is delivered to a dropbox in another county, it will be picked up by that county's Board of Elections staff, who will then have to relay it to the Board of Elections in your home county, most likely via USPS. (And if you put your ballot in an out-of-county dropbox on Election Day, to be picked up at 8:00 p.m. on Election Night by out-of-county staff, it's possible that it will not be sorted and taken to the USPS for postmarking until the next day ... which means it will be postmarked a day too late to count!)
If you see a problem, call the Voter Protection Hotline at 1-877-NJ-VOTER.

How do I return my Vote-by-Mail ballot at my polling place?

Vote-by-Mail ballots can be dropped off at your polling place on Election Day, November 3. (This was not possible during the primary election.) Polling places will be open from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
You must use your specific designated polling place, which will be communicated to you through an informational mailing that your County Clerk/Board of Elections must send no later than October 23.
This FAQ document will be updated to include polling place locations as this information becomes available. (See the county-by-county information at the end.)
A VBM ballot dropped off at a polling place MUST be delivered by that voter. It may not be dropped off by another person (a “bearer”).
If you see a problem, call the Voter Protection Hotline at 1-877-NJ-VOTER.

Can I still vote in person at a polling place? Can I use my usual polling place? How will it work?

There will be in-person polling places. Voters who wish to vote in person on Election Day may do so, using provisional paper ballots.
Your in-person polling place will probably NOT be your usual location. New Jersey anticipates fewer poll workers signing up than normal, due to concerns about COVID-19 transmission. Because of this, they will be able to staff fewer in-person polling places.
Every municipality must have at least one polling place. Every county must have at least 50% of its usual number of polling places. Given the 81-day lead-time, securing enough locations is a more achievable goal than it was for the more rushed July primary election. Should securing enough separate locations prove impossible, large polling centers that accommodate multiple polling districts may be used.
All public schools will be closed for in-person instruction on Election Day (November 3) to facilitate safe voting at school sites.
Polling places for each county are listed here.
You will be notified of your own specific polling place through an informational mailing that will be sent no later than October 23.
Poll hours will be the same as other years: 6:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Voters who are in line as of 8:00 p.m. will be permitted to vote.
Voting machines will NOT be available for most voters at the polling places. Instead, voters will fill out paper provisional ballots. Provisional ballots are real ballots, and each one will be counted once the Board of Elections confirms that no mail-in ballot has been received from the same voter.
One ADA-accessible voting machine will be available at each polling place, for use only by voters with disabilities.
You may also choose to turn in your VBM ballot at your polling place, rather than filling out a provisional ballot on-site.

Does voting in person at a polling place guarantee that my vote will be counted right away on Election Night?

No, it does not. Votes cast in person at polling places will be the last votes to be counted—but rest assured they WILL be counted! In New Jersey, votes cast in person at the polling place are cast using provisional paper ballots. These ballots will be logged and counted only AFTER all the mailed-in ballots have been logged in, so that Boards of Election can check that people who voted using provisional ballots did not also send in a mail-in ballot. Because mail-in ballots postmarked by November 3 have six days to arrive at the BOE through the mail, in-person votes cannot be counted for at least a week after Election Day.

Are polling places COVID-safe?

The safest way to vote is to return your vote-by-mail ballot through the USPS or a dropbox. But if you vote in-person at a polling place, please maintain social distance and wear a mask, out of consideration for your own health and safety, the health and safety of your fellow voters, and especially the health and safety of poll workers. Poll workers will face far greater exposure than the rest of us over the course of their long workday. We appreciate the risk they are taking by performing this important civic function.
If you cannot or do not wear a mask, you are still permitted to vote at a polling place.
The state encourages people at lower risk of becoming ill from COVID-19 to apply for employment as poll workers for this election. Young, healthy people are excellent candidates for this employment. Please visit www.pollworker.nj.gov for more information.

Can I hand-deliver my Vote-by-Mail ballot to my County Clerk's office or Board of Elections?

Yes. In addition to hand-delivering ballots to the Board of Elections, there will also be a dropbox outside of every County Clerk/Board of Elections office.
Hours of operation may vary from county to county, as they did in the primary.
We will update this FAQ as information about hours becomes available.

Do I need to stamp the envelope to mail my ballot through the USPS?

No! The return postage for your ballot is pre-paid.

Can I bring ballots to the County Clerk or Board of Elections to turn in for friends or family members?

Ballots can be hand-delivered to the County Clerk's office or the Board of Elections office. Check with your county's office for specific hours of operation. These may be limited based on Covid-safety, and some offices may remain closed.
A “bearer” may hand-deliver ballots for no more than 3 other people in any given election (NOT including the bearer's own ballot).
No one running as a candidate in that election may serve as a bearer.
A bearer must bring a driver’s license or other acceptable form of identification. Contact your Board of Elections for details about acceptable forms of identification. (See end of this FAQ for contact information.)
Before a bearer takes the ballot from the voter, the bearer must fill out and sign the Bearer Section on the left-front side of the return envelope. It is not permitted to fill out this section while at the Board of Elections.

What if I have a disability that makes it difficult for me to vote by mail or vote on a paper provisional ballot at my polling place?

If you have a disability and need an ADA-accessible ballot, please contact your County Clerk. (See contact information at the end of this document.)
You may use an in-person, ADA-accessible voting device at your assigned polling place on Election Day.
If you need help understanding your ballot or are having trouble participating in this election, don’t hesitate to contact your County Clerk or your county’s Board of Elections. Contact information can be found at the end of this FAQ.
If you experience a problem, call the Voter Protection Hotline at 1-877-NJ-VOTER.

How do I know if my ballot was received? Can I track my ballot?

You can track your ballot online to make sure it was received. To do so, sign up here. You will need to know your Voter ID number, which is located on the inner "confirmation envelope" that comes with your ballot, near where your address is printed. Be sure to make note of that number before returning your ballot. You may also use your SSN or driver’s license, but we have found that using your Voter ID number is easier.
You may contact your county’s Board of Elections to find out if your ballot has been received. However, the state’s online system should be your first choice for tracking your ballot, rather than calling your County Clerk or Board of Elections (both of which will be under a lot of stress during the hectic weeks pre- and post-election).
Please allow a week after submitting your ballot to inquire.

How will Vote-by-Mail ballots be counted? How long will it take?

Recent legislation (August 27) permits vote-counting of VBM ballots to begin 10 days before Election Day.
VBM ballots will be counted using extra-high-volume ballot scanners. Federal stimulus funds earmarked for election support will be used to purchase these scanners for counties that don’t already have them, so that slow, antiquated machines do not delay the reporting of results.
Election results MUST be certified by November 23. This will allow enough time for all mailed ballots to arrive and be counted, and then for provisional ballots cast at polling places to be reconciled against mailed-in ballots that have been received.

Do all vote-by-mail ballots get counted? Will I be notified if my ballot is rejected? Can I appeal the decision?

Ballots that are properly cast are counted. Reasons ballots may be rejected include:
- Arrival after the deadlines
- Neglecting to sign the Certification
- Signing the Certification in a way that does not match the voter-ID signature on file.
- Tampering with the Certificate of Election. If you mistakenly detach the certificate (the perforated part of the envelope), do not attempt to tape it back on. If your certificate is detached or damaged, request a new ballot by contacting your county clerk or vote in person at your polling place.
If your ballot is rejected, you will be notified by the Board of Elections within 24 hours, with an explanation of the reason your ballot was not counted.
In the following cases, voters will be given an opportunity to “cure” their rejected ballots and have their vote counted:
- A missing signature
- A signature that does not match the signature on their voter registration
- A detached certificate
- Issues that are beyond the voter's control, such as glue that doesn't work to close the envelope

If your ballot is rejected for problems with the signature, the Board of Elections has 24 hours to mail you a notice
explaining the problem, along with a "Cure Form" that will allow you to certify that the ballot WAS cast by you, and to
verify your identity. You have until November 18 to return the Cure Form in person, by fax or by email.

For a behind-the-scenes look at what happens in the ballot-approval process, click here.

When will we know the results of the November 3 general election?

We do not expect to know New Jersey's final results on Election Night. Ballots sent by USPS and postmarked by November 3 have until November 10 to be received for counting, and provisional ballots cast at in-person polling places cannot be opened and counted until they have been cross-checked against the list of people who used VBM ballot, to safeguard against duplicate votes.
Election results MUST be certified by November 23.
Accuracy and security will take priority over speed.

Does voting by mail in this election mean I will automatically be signed up to vote by mail in future elections?

No! When polling places are re-opened for future post-COVID elections, you will revert to your regular voting method, whether that was vote-by-mail or in-person.

In the interest of providing accurate information to the general public,
we urge members to share the link to this FAQ page
with their friends, family, and neighbors,
as well as in other community forums.