Mercer extends office hours to accept Absentee Ballots

The Clerk’s Office is open today through Friday, Oct. 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 1 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 3 p.m.

   In response to the record number of people seeking to vote by absentee ballot in the upcoming General Election, Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes announced his support for further extended office hours for Mercer County Clerk Paula Sollami Covello, and the Board of Elections.
   Of the 11,000 absentee ballots already requested by voters, approximately 6,000 have been returned and processed and the 5,000 outstanding could arrive at county offices for processing over the next few days.
   The absentee ballots are available at the Mercer County Clerk’s Office on the second floor of the county’s Criminal Courthouse at 209 S. Broad St., Trenton. They can be filled out in person until 3 p.m. Nov. 3, the day before Election Day. In order to obtain an absentee ballot, a resident must already be registered to vote. The Clerk’s Office is open today through Friday, Oct. 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 1 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 3 p.m. The Mercer County Clerk’s Office has on-site a registered voter and signature verification system so voters will receive their absentee ballot on the spot. Mercer County Sheriff’s Officers will be stationed at the Courthouse during those hours providing extra security.
   An absentee ballot that is filled out must then be dropped off at the Mercer County Board of Elections Office on the first floor of the Mercer County Administration Building at 640 S. Broad St. prior to or on Election Day, Nov. 4. Absentee ballots will be accepted at the Board of Elections up until 8 p.m. sharp on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 4. Ballots received after 8 p.m. will not be counted. Those who fill out an absentee ballot do not need to vote at the polls on Nov. 4.
   The Board of Elections Office also has extended its hours to accommodate voters and will be open through Friday, Oct. 31 from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 1 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.
   Under New Jersey law, registered voters do not need to be out-of-state to vote by absentee ballot and do not need to provide a reason for requesting one.
   County residents have been urged to vote any time before Election Day via absentee ballots in order to lessen congestion at the polls in what is predicted to be the heaviest voter turnout for a general election in decades.
   Aside from voting by absentee ballot, Mr. Hughes urged voters who plan to cast their ballot on Nov. 4 to review their sample ballot carefully in order to familiarize themselves with it and to bring their sample ballot to the polls. Sample ballots also inform voters to which voting district they are in and tells voters where their polling locations are.
   Voters also should try to visit their polling place during off-peak hours from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Election Day. Polling stations in New Jersey are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 4.
   The Mercer County Department of Transportation and Infrastructure has created windproof metal signs directing voters in English and Spanish where to drop off their absentee ballots. Those signs will be posted outside the county Administration Building on Election Day. The county is also erecting light towers outside the Administration Building to keep the parking lots, crosswalk, and sidewalks well lit for the duration of the evening hours on Nov. 4.
   According to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, statewide more than 575,000 new voters have registered in 2008 and the total number of registered voters in New Jersey as of last week was 5,351,669.
   In Mercer County, 218,397 residents have registered to vote, an increase of 23,900 voters since the November 2007 elections.
   The following are important numbers if residents have questions about the election process:
   Mercer County Superintendent of Elections, (609) 989-6750
   Mercer County Clerk, (609) 989-6494, 6495, 6465, 6473, 6494, 6497 or 6075.