New Jersey residents who want an “I Voted” sticker needn’t wait until Election Day: Nine days of early, in-person voting begins Saturday at some 150 locations across the state.

This is the fifth time counties will operate sites for early in-person voting; the first was for the 2021 gubernatorial general election. Voters can use a machine in any of the early polling sites open in their home counties between Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 5. Every county has at least three locations, with 18 in Hudson County.

The stakes are high in this year’s elections, with all 120 seats in the state Legislature up for grabs, as well as county, municipal and school board seats. NJ Spotlight News has information about every legislative race in the NJ Voter Guide.

Voters here are slowly embracing voting by machine before Election Day, which is Tuesday, Nov. 7. The first election in which it was available, in fall of 2021, close to 208,000 people voted during the period, or 7.8% of all those who cast ballots. During last year’s congressional midterm elections, the number rose slightly to almost 214,000, or 8% of total turnout. The numbers voting during the three early in-person polling days prior to the primary elections has been much smaller, fewer than 30,000 in total.

Jesse Burns, executive director of the League of Women Voters of New Jersey, said the early in-person voter turnout in this year’s election may not be a good gauge of the public’s interest, given the overall turnout is expected to be low. In 2019, the last time the Legislature topped balloting, just 27% of registrants voted.

Low expectations for turnout

“2024, when we can expect a higher turnout, will be a better test of its growth in New Jersey,” Burns said, referring to next year’s presidential balloting, the first time early in-person voting will be available in New Jersey for a presidential election.

Mail-in voting has been far more popular for those who want to cast a ballot before Election Day. More than twice as many people used mail-in ballots in the last two general elections than turned up to vote in person by machine. That’s not surprising to voting rights advocates, who say given filling out a ballot at home and dropping it in the mail or a drop box is the most convenient way to vote and more than 930,000 New Jersey registrants automatically receive a mail-in ballot every year.

As of Wednesday, close to 290,000 voters had returned mail-in ballots, according to an analysis of the state’s vote-by-mail database. Democrats continue to be most likely to embrace mail-in voting; they’re responsible for about two-thirds of the ballots returned so far. Republicans have worked to promote voting by mail, going so far in some competitive districts to include an application for a mail-in ballot as part of a campaign mailer. But so far, ballots from registered Republican voters account for only 21% of all those submitted.

Voter advocates say a greater push by state and local election officials, as well as candidates, could help boost in-person early voting.

“I think county election offices and the Division of Elections could use more support to create the resources necessary to ramp up voter education and reach more voters,” Burns said. “Some counties have started to include this information on the sample ballot and send ahead of the in-person early voting period, and I think this is great. I also think campaigns will continue to improve their in-person early voting canvassing efforts alongside their vote-by-mail strategies.”

More details

Early machine voting before a general election lasts nine days, beginning two Saturdays before Election Day. Polling places where people can vote on a machine that includes a voter-verified paper trail — many Election Day machines in New Jersey still do not — will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Voters can find the early voting sites in their counties on the state Division of Elections’ website or on NJ Spotlight News’ elections page.

For those who would rather mail in a ballot, the deadline to request a ballot is fast approaching; county officials must receive a mailed request for a ballot by Oct. 31. Voters can also apply in person for a mail-in ballot at their county clerk’s office through 3 p.m. on Nov. 6.

A multimedia series by NJ Spotlight News, “Gotta Know Jersey,” also provides information about the Legislature and how it works and includes a video on how to vote in New Jersey.