Gov. Phil Murphy has signed Executive Order No. 120, postponing primary elections from June 2 to July 7 in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
This includes primaries for President, U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, the 25th District of the New Jersey Legislature, and county and municipal elections, as well as county committee elections, according to an April 8 press release from the governor’s office.
“Preserving basic functions of our democracy is critical in this unprecedented time,” Murphy said. “Citizens exercising their right to vote should not have to risk their safety and the safety of others in order to make their voices heard. Postponing our primary elections is a difficult, yet necessary, choice to ensure our citizens can partake in their civic duty of voting.”
“Gov. Murphy’s decision to move New Jersey’s primary election to July 7 will provide our state, county and local election officials with the time we need to prepare for a free, fair and safe election for New Jersey voters,” Secretary of State Tahesha Way said.
The governor’s order also states that all deadlines for meeting statutory requirements for a primary election that are currently scheduled to occur after April 11 will be calculated using the July 7 primary election date, according to the press release.
This would not affect any deadlines that have already passed, such as the filing deadline for candidate petitions for the primary election, or will pass prior to April 11.
The only exception is the deadline for change of party affiliation declaration forms to be filed, which was scheduled for April 8 and will move to May 13, according to the press release.
Additionally, independent candidate petitions will be due by 4 p.m. July 7 and the electronic signature and submission requirements that were set forth in Executive Order No. 105 for primary candidates will be extended to these independent candidate petitions, according to the press release.