STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman AL BARLAS
District 40 (Bergen, Essex and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires blank nominating petition forms for primary election candidates be made available for next primary election within 10 calendar days of county canvassers' general election results certification.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning the availability of blank nominating petition forms for primary election candidates and supplementing Title 19 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Notwithstanding any provision of Title 19 of the Revised Statutes, or any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the blank forms of petitions to be used by candidates to be voted for at the primary election by the voters of a political party shall be made available by the Secretary of State, county clerks, or municipal clerks, as the case may be, for the next year’s primary election within 10 calendar days of the certification of the general election results by the board of county canvassers pursuant to R.S.19:19-13.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires blank nominating petition forms for partisan primary election candidates to be made available for the next primary election within 10 calendar days of the board of county canvassers’ certification of the November general election results.
Under current law, completed petitions for the nomination of political party candidates at the June primary election are filed by the candidates with the Secretary of State, county clerks, or municipal clerks, as the case may be, depending on whether the June primary election is for the nomination of candidates to the general election for Governor or United States Senator (Statewide), Member of the United States House of Representatives (congressional), Member of the New Jersey Senate or General Assembly (legislative), countywide, or within a single municipality.
Under this bill, the blank forms of petitions to be used by candidates to be voted for at the June primary election by the voters of a political party would be required to be made available by the Secretary of State, county clerks, or municipal clerks, as the case may be, for the next year’s primary election within 10 calendar days of the board of county canvassers’ certification of the November general election results.
Current law provides that the board of county canvassers in each county meets 15 days after the November general election to canvass the election results. The boards of county canvassers certify the results to the Secretary of State five days after their meeting. Therefore, under the bill, the blank nominating petition forms for the next year’s primary election would be made available approximately 30 days after the November general election.