Credit: (Sussex County Clerk)Despite a flurry of legal maneuvers over the past several days, Friday’s earthshaking federal court ruling abolishing the use of county-line ballots in New Jersey for the Democratic primary stands for now. Although a clarification by the judge over the weekend means Republican primary ballots will continue to use a party-line design.
If an appeals panel does not step in over the next few days, New Jersey Democrats will, for the first time in modern history, be using ballots that group candidates by office without regard to any county party endorsements or other slogans. That could mean some of the state’s most hotly contested congressional primaries — for Rep. Andy Kim’s 3rd District seat and against incumbents Rob Menendez in the 8th and Bill Pascrell Jr in the 9th — could be close races.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and his wife face 18 charges of conspiring with three businessmen to accept bribes of cash, gold bars and a Mercedes in exchange for political favor. They have pled not guilty.
Republican primary ballots, on the other hand, will look the same as they have, with candidates for all offices who were awarded the party-line grouped together and others listed alone.
No reason to stay order
U.S. District Court Judge Zahid N. Quraishi on Monday declined to stay the order he issued last Friday that no county can design Democratic primary ballots that include a preferential line.
Judge Zahid Quraishi grants preliminary injunction sought by Rep. Andy Kim and others
“For the same reasons expressed in its Opinion … the Court concludes that the Defendants have not demonstrated that a stay pending appeal is warranted,” Quarishi wrote Monday. “Defendants do not raise any new facts or law suggesting their appeal is likely to succeed on the merits. The Court declines to retread the same ground a second time.”
The 14 county clerks who chose to appeal had tried to argue that there is not enough time to make the required ballot design changes, especially given they will now have to design different ballots for the two parties. Like other elected officials, county clerks and those seeking the position have also sought to win party backing and a coveted spot on the line.
“Providing the Clerks five business days’ notice to change a ballot design in effort for decades, is, respectfully, inequitable, unreasonable and only causes confusion,” wrote Jason S. Nunnermacker, representing Bergen County Clerk John Hogan, in a letter to the judge.
But at least five clerks — in Burlington, Hudson, Middlesex, Ocean and Warren counties — either chose not to appeal or backed out of appealing, and appear ready to comply with the judge’s order.
Emphasize voter education
“Rather than pursue the motion to stay and appeal, my client will take steps to comply with the Order and education voters on the new ballot design” wrote Mark Natale, who represents Burlington County Clerk Joanne Schwartz.
Similarly, the attorney for Hudson County Clerk E. Junior Maldonado told the court that Maldonado would comply and “emphasize concentration on voter education rather than focus on a stay and appeal.”
Although Essex County appears to remain on the list of those appealing the decision, Clerk Chris Durkin tweeted Sunday that he is “in favor of block ballot voting” and would create “clear and concise” ballots for voters.
Kim had become the frontrunner in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate after Tammy Murphy dropped out. Now his success in his lawsuit against the line, filed when Murphy, wife of Gov. Phil Murphy, had won the coveted position in the largest Democratic counties, and his vows to continue to work to end the use of the line once and for all, could help his opponents Patricia Campos Medina and Larry Hamm gain more votes. Kim is still the favorite to win.
A ballot that groups candidates who have received endorsements has given those candidates the edge for decades. Eliminating the party line could wind up improving the chances of a number of challengers in congressional primaries.
Micah Rasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University, said the greatest impact could come in Kim’s 3rd District, where no incumbent is running to replace him. There, Assemblyman Herb Conaway had won the endorsements of all three Democratic county committees. But Assemblywoman Carol Murphy, who represents the same district in the Legislature as Conaway, could get a boost as she also has name recognition in at least the Burlington County part of the congressional district.
A new path forward
“After Herb Conaway won all the endorsements and county organization lines … it was tough to see much of a path forward for the other candidates,” Rasmussen said. “Now that the organizations will need to rely on other ways to make sure primary voters know who they are endorsing, there’s an opportunity for Carol Murphy and the other candidates to make the stronger case for themselves.”
The lack of a party line further complicates the race in the 8th District in North Jersey, where freshman incumbent Rob Menendez faces Kyle Jasey and Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla. Bhalla had raised more money than Menendez as of the end of last year. And it’s unknown whether Menendez, a first-term incumbent, will be tarnished by his father’s indictment on public corruption charges.
The move was prompted by the haste with which several Democratic Party organizations endorsed Tammy Murphy
“In Menendez’s case, the additional question will be whether his family name recognition is positive or negative, without the alignment with the Hudson County Democratic organization,” Rasmussen added. “That’s not to say this doesn’t give Bhalla new hope. As a stronglymfunded challenger, he will be able to make the kind of case we’re talking about. A lineless ballot doesn’t automatically make every challenger more competitive — the ones who can outraise and outorganize their opponents are the ones who could benefit.”
While Quraishi’s word that Republicans can continue to run on ballots with preferential lines pleased many, including Morris County GOP that is now seeking to intervene in the suit, it upset at least some others. Albert Harshaw, a Republican Senate candidate, filed papers seeking to appeal Friday’s ruling, contending that it creates two different classes of citizens, Republicans who have to continue to vote a party-line ballot, and Democrats who do not. Harshaw and other GOP candidates could benefit from a ballot without a party line because South Jersey hotelier Curtis Bashaw would appear to have an advantage in that primary having won the most county lines of any candidate.
