Editorial: New voters swell rolls for fall election

   “Voting is the foundational act that breathes life into the principle of the consent of the governed."
— The Rev. DeForest Soaries, former New Jersey Secretary of State
   From all indications, poll workers will be busy come Nov. 4.
   That’s because voter-registration figures show a significant increase in the number of registered voters statewide — with a huge influx of new voters registering in South Brunswick since last year.
   According to the township clerk’s office, South Brunswick registration is up 13 percent, with the bulk of new voters choosing to register as Democrats. In all, 33 percent of the 24,280 registered voters are Democrats, 14 percent are Republicans and 53 are unaffiliated or registered independents.
   Last year, 22 percent of registered voters were Democrats, 12 percent were Republicans and 66 percent were unaffiliated.
   The jump in registration and party affiliation has been a statewide phenomenon, according to the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University.
   Ingrid Reed, director of the institute’s New Jersey Project, said the trend has been for more people to register as Democrats. Between June 8 and Sept. 16, for instance, 82,000 voters added their names to the rolls with 41 percent registering as Democrats, 9 percent as Republicans and 50 percent remaining unaffiliated.
   In Middlesex County during the same time period, about 8,000 new voters registered with 32 percent declaring as Democrats and 6 percent as Republicans.
   The numbers show that the democratic process is in much better health than many believed — and that is good news for the entire country.

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   The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 4 election is Oct. 14.
   To register, visit the township clerk’s office in the Municipal Building on Route 522 or the county commissioner of registration, located at 777 Jersey Ave., New Brunswick. For more information, call 732-745-8114.
   Applications for absentee ballots must be received by the county clerk by Oct. 28, if made by mail; by Oct. 31, if made by fax (732-745-2170); or by Nov. 3, if requested in person at the county clerk’s office. The office is located at 75 Bayard St. in New Brunswick. Mail applications must be sent to the Hon. Elaine Flynn, P.O. Box 1110, 75 Bayard St., 4th Floor, New Brunswick, N.J. 08901-1110. For questions, call 732-745-3827.
   Or go visit the state Division of Elections on the Web at www.state.nj.us/state/elections.