OCEAN COUNTY – While Election Day is November 5, there are options available to vote sooner.
Deputy Director of the Ocean County Board of Commissioner Gary Quinn said, “it wasn’t all that long ago that a voter’s voting option was to head to the polls on Election Day to cast their ballots and while that traditional option remains available, with the addition of early voting and vote by mail, voters can certainly participate in this year’s election casting their ballot easily and conveniently.”
Early voting starts on Oct. 26 and runs through Nov. 3 with 10 locations. The hours are from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sundays and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. all other days.
“Early voting allows you to vote at a location that might be convenient to your work or your home. It is also a convenient way to cast a ballot should you be away on Election Day,” Quinn said.
He noted, “it doesn’t matter which early voting site you choose to cast your vote. All 10 sites have the ballots for all 33 municipalities. Early voting allows you to vote in person, on a secure state of the art technology voting machine and electronic poll book so that any voter from any election district can cast the proper ballot at any of the 10 locations in the County.”
One of the best websites for information on voting in the General Election is the Ocean County Clerk’s website. Voters can check out oceancountyclerk.com to find information on Vote by Mail ballots, early voting and to view sample ballots to assist on casting a ballot on Election Day.
Ocean County Clerk Scott M. Colabella said, “the website and also the sample ballots contain the information voters need to determine the best and most convenient way for them to cast a ballot. Ocean County voters still like to vote the traditional way by heading to the polls on Election Day to cast a ballot. Other voters are seeing the convenience in mail-in ballots and early voting.”
Colabella added that the sample ballot mailed to your home contains important information including early voting locations and vote by mail ballot drop box locations throughout Ocean County.
“Of course, it also tells your polling location where you can cast your ballot on Election Day,” he added.
About 471,000 sample ballots will be delivered to Ocean County’s registered voters. The ballots are also available online on the Clerk’s website.
Colabella noted that the offices on the ballot in the General Election includes the candidates running for U.S. President, U.S. Senate, U.S. Congressional Districts 2 and 4, Ocean County Commissioners, and numerous municipal local offices and school board contests.
As of Oct. 18, the Office of the County Clerk issued 68,015 vote by mail ballots including 24,704 to registered Democrats, 18,666 to undeclared voters and 24,645 to registered Republicans.
“With two weeks to Election Day, more than 34,766 voters or 51 percent have already returned their vote by mail ballots to the Board of Elections. We know these numbers already surpass the 2016 total of 29,202,” Colabella said.
Colabella added this was the first presidential election where in-person early voting on a machine is available to voters in New Jersey. Vote by mail applications can be downloaded from the Clerk’s website. The deadline to mail the ballot using the U.S. Postal Service is Oct. 29.
Photo by Bob Vosseller
After Oct. 29, voters must appear in person at the Clerk’s Office to apply and pick up a vote by mail ballot by 3 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4 the cutoff for issuing vote by mail ballots. A court order is needed for a vote by mail application after that date and time.
Quinn noted there are 20 secure vote-by-mail ballot drop off boxes conveniently located throughout Ocean County. The drop off deadline is 8 p.m. on Nov. 5.
“Most of these boxes are located on Ocean County Library branch properties, so they have security cameras in the area and are frequented by security. It’s important our voters know their votes are secure and count,” Quinn added.
The early voting sites in Ocean County include: the Berkeley Library, 30 Station Road, Bayville; the Brick Library, 301 Chambersbridge Road, Brick; the Jackson Library, 2 Jackson Drive, Jackson; The Lacey Community Center, (Former Knights of Columbus Building), Room C, 15 E Lacey Road, Lacey; The Lakewood Township Municipal Building, Courtroom, 231 3rd St., Lakewood; the Upper Shores Branch of the Ocean County Library, 112 Jersey City Ave., Lavallette; the Little Egg Harbor Library; 290 Mathistown Road, Little Egg Harbor Township; the Ocean County Southern Service Center, nutrition site, 179 S Main St., Manahawkin; the Manchester Library, 21 Colonial Dr., Manchester and the Toms River Library, 101 Washington St., Toms River.
The drop off box locations are: Barnegat Library, 112 Burr St., Barnegat; Beachwood Library, 126 Beachwood Blvd., Beachwood; Berkeley Library, 30 Station Road, Bayville; Brick Library, 301 Chambersbridge Road, Brick; Jackson Library, 2 Jackson Drive, Jackson; Lacey Library, 10 E. Lacey Road, Forked River; Upper Shores Branch, Ocean County Library, 112 Jersey City Ave., Lavallette; Little Egg Harbor Library, 290 Mathistown Road, Little Egg Harbor; Long Beach Island Library, 217 S. Central Ave., Surf City, and Manchester Library, 21 Colonial Drive, Manchester; the Ocean County Northern Resource Center – 225 4th St., Lakewood; Ocean County Parking Garage, 3rd Floor, Madison Ave., Toms River; and PIC, Inc. of Ocean County, 1959 Route 9, Toms River.
Additional boxes can be found at: Plumsted Library, 119 Evergreen Road, New Egypt; Point Pleasant Library, 834 Beaver Dam Road, Point Pleasant; Ocean County Southern Service Center, 179 South Main St., Manahawkin; Toms River Library, 101 Washington St., Toms River; Ocean County Courthouse, 118 Washington St., Toms River; Waretown Library, 112 Main St., Waretown; and the Whiting Reading Center/Library, 400 Lacey Road, Suite 5, Whiting.
Vote by mail ballots can also be dropped off at the Ocean County Board of Elections Office at 129 Hooper Ave., Toms River, until 8 p.m. Election Day.
The polls are open on Election Day, Nov. 5 from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. in all voting districts in Ocean County.
Director of the Ocean County Board of Commissioners Barbara Jo Crea said, “we encourage our residents to get out and vote. Casting your ballot will always be the anchor to our democracy and to have your voice heard.”
The post Ocean County Reminds Voters Of Varied Voting Options appeared first on Jersey Shore Online.
