New Jersey

Democratic candidates want primary ballot design altered

Published

9 months ago

February 20, 2024

Democratic candidates want primary ballot design altered

The issue with the line has been elevated this year in New Jersey’s Senate primary

This is not the first time the ballot design issue is under scrutiny. It’s long been a controversial element and is the subject of a lawsuit currently in federal court. New Jersey is the only state where the majority of primary ballots are organized by endorsement.

But it wasn’t until this year, Dworkin said, that “the line” emerged as a big issue, after Murphy declared her candidacy.

“Party leaders from across the state went out and endorsed her and promised that they would give her the line,” he said. “It’s always been out there but it now has emerged as a real top issue because it distinguishes one candidate from the other.”

Murphy was not included in the joint letter from the three other candidates. According to Politico, she avoided addressing whether she would forgo “the line.”

“We’ve got a great New Jersey primary system that is set up by statute,” she said. “That’s what it is right now. If the statute should change, then we all operate under a different system.”

It’s unclear if the law guides how ballots are structured.

There is also no uniform structure in how county party endorsements are given to candidates.

In Monmouth County, where Kim earned the endorsement, it was through a party convention. Some counties hold screening committees that interview candidates.

The line does and doesn’t determine whether a candidate wins a primary

Despite party endorsements, New Jersey is an open primary state. Anyone who chooses to vote in-person can declare a political party at their polling location and vote.

Dworkin suggests that keeping “the line” prevents the primary process from being “overwhelmed.”

“It allows for vetting it, allows for appreciation of those who have worked and try to curry support,” he said. “It doesn’t allow some outsider to be able to come in and just take over a party.”

Research has shown that candidates who were on the line won their races by an average of 38 points.

Brian Hughes ended his bid for a sixth term as Mercer County executive after not securing his party’s endorsement. He lost to Dan Benson, who would go on to get elected.

Two decades ago, Nia Gill ran “off the line.” She defeated LeRoy Jones, who is now chairman of the New Jersey and Essex County Democratic parties.

After her district was combined last year with fellow Democrat Richard Codey, a former governor and long-time state senator, she ran off the line again. Gill ultimately lost the primary.

Source link

Click to comment

New Jersey

New Jersey battles wildfires in record-breaking dry conditions

Published

3 hours ago

November 7, 2024

Press Room

New Jersey battles wildfires in record-breaking dry conditions

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Now Playing

New Jersey battles wildfires in record-breaking dry conditions

00:50
UP NEXT

Recovery underway in Cuba after being hit by Hurricane Rafael

02:22
California wildfire fueled by Santa Ana winds forces evacuations

02:54
Snow finally settles on Mount Fuji, weeks after it usually appears

00:36
Cuba’s power grid goes down as Hurricane Rafael hits the island

00:47
Wildfire emergency in Southern California threatens homes

00:59
Election Day weather forecast sees heavy rain and flooding from Gulf to Midwest

01:26
Tornadoes tear through Oklahoma with more storms on the way

01:02
Severe weather rips through Oklahoma

01:29
See it: Chopper footage shows widespread damage after overnight Oklahoma tornadoes

01:35
Aerial video shows scale of flood devastation in Spain

01:18
Deadly typhoon brings travel chaos and floods to Taiwan

01:19
Halloween 2024 forecast: Record heat expected in dozens of cities

01:02
Dozens of cities across US to face unusually warm Halloween

01:46
At least 95 die in flash floods in Spain

01:52
Flash flooding leaves at least 51 dead in Spain

00:47
NASA astronauts undock from space station after weeks of delay

01:10
Americans hit parks, beaches amid record high temps in October

03:18
Severe flooding in New Mexico leads to two deaths

01:50
Even ‘climate havens’ are not immune to severe weather

01:58

Now Playing

New Jersey battles wildfires in record-breaking dry conditions

00:50
UP NEXT

Recovery underway in Cuba after being hit by Hurricane Rafael

02:22
California wildfire fueled by Santa Ana winds forces evacuations

02:54
Snow finally settles on Mount Fuji, weeks after it usually appears

00:36
Cuba’s power grid goes down as Hurricane Rafael hits the island

00:47
Wildfire emergency in Southern California threatens homes

00:59

Source link

New Jersey

Crews battling 2 wildfires in New Jersey, where conditions are driest in nearly 120 years

Published

11 hours ago

November 7, 2024

Press Room

Crews battling 2 wildfires in New Jersey, where conditions are driest in nearly 120 years

A forest fire in a Philadelphia suburb was threatening homes Thursday in what officials called the driest conditions in nearly 120 years.

Another fire about an hour away in Jackson Township was less than half contained when the blaze broke out in Evesham, threatening 50 homes, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said. It could not immediately give a size estimate for the Evesham blaze.

“This is the driest we’ve been in the agency’s history,” said Jeremy Webber, a supervising fire warden with the Fire Service, which was established in 1906.

Lack of significant rainfall since August contributed to the dry conditions, which prompted the state to impose strict restrictions on outdoor fires.

Details about the Evesham fire were scarce Thursday morning, as the fire had only recently been reported. The fire service said the 50 threatened homes have not needed to be evacuated yet.

The fire in Jackson, in the central portion of the New Jersey Pine Barrens, had grown to less than half a square mile (1.2 square kilometers) and was 40% contained as of mid-morning Thursday, said Deale Carey, incident commander for the fire service.

He said conditions were so dry that new spot fires were continuously breaking out as wind-blown leaves fall onto burning or smoldering areas.

Source link

New Jersey

Scot, a 1,600-pound great white shark, is lurking in the waters off New Jersey

Published

20 hours ago

November 7, 2024

Press Room

Scot, a 1,600-pound great white shark, is lurking in the waters off New Jersey

Two-minute read

There haven’t been many “pings” if any from OCEARCH-tagged great white sharks off New Jersey’s coast this year until this week, when a 12-footer nicknamed Scot popped up just inshore of the continental shelf.

A satellite picked up Scot’s tracking tag on its dorsal fin at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, revealing the apex predator’s location was just northwest of the Hudson Canyon. The Hudson, a submarine canyon and prolific fishing ground for tuna, begins about 80 miles east of the Manasquan Inlet.

Scot is an impressive adult male shark that weighed 1,644 pounds when it was tagged by researchers Sept. 8, 2021, having been found it was swimming near Ironbound Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. OCEARCH researchers nicknamed him Scot after the people of Nova Scotia.

Since being tagged, Scot has swam 16,326 miles, a journey that has taken him from the Florida Keys to the Gulf of St. Lawrence on its seasonal migrations up and down the Atlantic Seaboard.

OCEARCH is a nonprofit research group that has been studying great white sharks’ behavior for over a decade off the eastern seaboard of the U.S. and Canada. Its Western North Atlantic White Shark Study is one of the most comprehensive studies of great white sharks in the world and includes a full health assessment of each shark, microbiological studies, movement, temperature and depth studies through the use of three different tags.

The largest of the great white sharks OCEARCH has tagged is Nukumi, a female that was 17 feet, 2 inches and 3,541 pounds when it was tagged. Nukumi has yet to ping off the coast of New Jersey.

The study has shown that the great white sharks winter in the waters off the southeastern coast of the U.S. and migrate north to waters off New England and Canada in the summer.

When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.

Source link