N.J. Stat. tit. 19, ch. 49

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-1 Official ballots furnished

Official ballots of the form and description set forth in this subtitle for use upon voting machines shall be prepared and furnished in the same manner as now provided by law.

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-2 Official ballots.

19:49-2. All official general election ballots shall be in black ink in type as large as space will reasonably permit, provided, however, that above any public question to be voted upon by the voters of the entire State there shall be a description of the public question, which description shall not exceed six words and shall be in type as large as is practicable. Party nominations shall be arranged on each voting machine, either in columns or horizontal rows; the caption of the various ballots on the machines shall be so placed on the machines as to indicate to the voter what device is to be used or operated in order to vote for the candidates or candidate of the voter's choice. The providing of the official ballots, the order of the precedence and arrangement of parties and of candidates, and the instructions for the use of a device to be used or operated in order to vote for candidates shall be as now required by law. The county clerk in every county shall have the authority to determine the specifications for, and the final arrangement of, the official general election ballots to the extent not inconsistent with the provisions of this Title. amended 1940, c.137; 1941, c.163, s.1; 1944, c.127; 1945, c.70; 1946, c.17; 1948, c.240; 2004, c.88, s.16; 2011, c.202, s.46; 2025, c.32, s.7.

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-2.1 Repeal

All acts or parts of acts inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed insofar as they relate to counties of the first class where voting machines are or shall be used. L.1941, c. 163, p. 521, s. 2.

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-3 Number of official ballots to be furnished.

19:49-3. At least one week prior to the start of the early voting period for any primary, local, or general election two sets of official ballots shall be provided for each voting machine, for each polling place, for each election district, for use in and upon the voting machine. One set thereof shall be inserted or placed in or upon the voting machine and the other shall be retained in the custody and possession of the county board of elections or the superintendent of elections or the municipal clerk, as the case may be, having custody of voting machines, unless it shall become necessary during the course of the election to make use of the same upon or in the voting machine. At the close of the election all official ballots, except those actually in or upon the voting machine at the close of the election, whether the same shall have been used in the machine or not, shall be returned to the official providing the same in the manner by this Title provided. amended 1945, c.56, s.4; 2021, c.40, s.18.

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-4 Instruction ballots; sample ballots; preparation; mailing; posting

a. (1) The officer or officers whose duty it may be under this subtitle to provide and furnish official ballots for any polling place where a voting machine is to be used shall also provide 2 sample ballots or more, or instruction ballots, which sample or instruction ballot shall be arranged in the form of a diagram showing such portion of the face of the voting machine as it will appear after the official ballots are arranged thereon or therein for voting on election day. Such sample or instruction ballots shall be open to the inspection of all voters on election day, in all elections where voting machines are used. (2) For election districts in which the primary language of 10% or more of the registered voters is Spanish, the officer or officers whose duty it may be under this subtitle to provide and furnish official ballots for any polling place where a voting machine is to be used shall also provide 2 sample ballots or more, or instruction ballots, printed bilingually in English and Spanish. Such sample or instruction ballots shall be open to the inspection of all voters on election day, in appropriate election districts, in all elections where voting machines are used. b. There shall be furnished a sufficient number of sample ballots printed entirely in black ink, a facsimile of the face of the machine, of a reduced size, one of which sample ballots shall be mailed to each registered voter, except that for election districts in which the primary language of 10% or more of the registered voters is Spanish, sample ballots printed bilingually in English and Spanish shall be mailed to each registered voter. Any reference to sample ballot envelopes in any section of this Title to the contrary notwithstanding, in all counties where voting machines are used and wherein the commissioner of registration has the facilities to mail out sample ballots direct to the registrants of such county and has elected so to do, as otherwise in this Title provided, the commissioner of registration in any such county may request the county clerk of such county to have the sample ballots prepared in the manner following: (1) The county clerk shall have said sample ballots for all general and special elections printed in such manner that, when folded, the words "Official General Election Sample Ballot" or as the case may be, shall appear on the reverse side thereof, together with the words "In cases where the sample ballot is to be sent to an addressee who does not receive his mail by delivery to his home or through rural free delivery "if not delivered within 5 days return to the commissioner of registration' and in all other cases "if not delivered within 2 days return to the commissioner of registration.' Do not Forward. Return Postage Guaranteed" over the return address of the commissioner of registration. Such portion of the ballot may contain such additional words that conform with United States Postal regulations that will prevent such envelope from being forwarded to the voter at any other address than that appearing on the envelope, and that will cause such envelope to be returned to the commissioner of registration, with information thereon from the post office showing the reason for nondelivery. (2) The county clerk in drawing the specifications for the printing of the official primary ballots shall include the requirement that the municipal clerks shall have primary sample ballots printed in such manner that, when folded, the words "Official Primary Election Sample Ballot" shall appear on the reverse side thereof, together with the words "In cases where the sample ballot is to be sent to an addressee who does not receive his mail by delivery to his home or through rural free delivery "if not delivered within 5 days return to the commissioner of registration' and in all other cases "if not delivered within 2 days return to the commissioner of registration.' Do Not Forward. Return Postage Guaranteed" over the return address of the commissioner of registration. Such portion of the ballot may contain such additional words that conform with United States Postal regulations that will prevent such envelope from being forwarded to the voter at any other address than that appearing on the envelope, and that will cause such envelope to be returned to the commissioner of registration, with information thereon from the post office showing the reason for nondelivery. (3) Five sample ballots shall be posted as now required by law. c. For all general and special elections the county clerk, and for all primary and municipal elections the municipal clerks, shall, at least 30 days preceding any such election, make the arrangements necessary to be made with the postmaster or postmasters in their respective counties and municipalities to have the said sample ballots mailed under the postal laws and regulations, and forthwith notify the said commissioner of registration in writing to that effect. Amended by L.1947, c. 79, p. 456, s. 1; L.1958, c. 105, p. 572, s. 1; L.1969, c. 35, s. 2, eff. May 9, 1969; L.1974, c. 30, s. 14.

N.J. Stat. § 19:49-5 Irregular ballots

Ballots voted for any person whose name does not appear on the machine as a nominated candidate for office are herein referred to as irregular ballots. Such irregular ballot shall be written or affixed in or upon the receptacle or device provided on the machine for that purpose. No irregular ballot shall be voted for any person for any office whose name appears on the machine as a nominated candidate for that office or for a delegate or alternate to a national party convention; any irregular ballot so voted shall not be counted. An irregular ballot must be cast in its appropriate place on the machine, or it shall be void and not counted. Amended by L.1941, c. 166, p. 530, s. 5; L.1984, c. 39, s. 2, eff. May 4, 1984.