June 7, 2005 Party faithful, primary greenhorns due out
By Kirk Moore
ASBURY PARK PRESS
Big Turnout Expected
Experts say the crowded Republican gubernatorial field will attract large numbers of motivated party faithful to the polls today — and first-time primary voters can easily join in, thanks to a little-known wrinkle in New Jersey election law.
Registered voters with declared party affiliations can vote only for candidates of their own parties, election officials say. But voters who are casting their ballot in a primary for the first time, and have not yet declared a party affiliation, can sign up to participate in the primary at their polling place, said Scott M. Colabella, deputy Ocean County clerk.
"The law allows that for undeclared voters, which are the majority in New Jersey," he said.
"It's very easy, and people don't know this. You can go in and request the ballot of the party of your choice," said Ingrid Reed, director of the New Jersey Project at Rutgers University's Eagleton Institute of Politics.
"It's a very open process if you haven't voted (in a primary) before," Reed said.
In contrast, it takes some planning on the part of affiliated voters who want to switch parties in time for a primary; this year's re-registration deadline was April 18, a full 50 days before primary day, Colabella said.
Primary voting rules vary wildly among the 50 states, with a few allowing wide-open polls and others, like New Jersey, setting more strict registration requirements. Historically those rules have been written partly to minimize political mischief, Reed said.
"There is, in a certain sense, a strategy about this so people can't be manipulated into undermining the other party," Reed said.
Primary registration deadlines typically precede the deadline for candidates to file for the primary elections, to make it harder for factions to mount such stealth campaigns, she said.
"It's trying to make the primaries pure," she said.
With around 850,000 registered Republicans and 1.1 million registered Democrats in the state, Reed is predicting a big turnout, perhaps as high as 350,000 on the GOP side and 400,000 among Democrats.
"Some people say they don't have a strong party preference, and they'd just as soon let the parties decide (nominations), and then they'll vote on the candidates" in November, Reed said. But voters who cast ballots on the Republican side especially will be playing a role in shaping the party's direction for this November and future election cycles.
"Obviously when you do have a contest in the party, you have a range of philosophy and belief," Reed said. "When it comes to ideology, if you're a Republican, this election is very important, at least when it comes to social issues."
