The bill amends New Jersey's election laws to create a more inclusive primary election process, allowing voters to participate in any political party's primary regardless of their registered affiliation. It permits voters to change their party affiliation at the polling place on primary election day, enabling them to vote in a different party's primary. Additionally, mail-in voters will have the option to complete a primary ballot for any political party, and submitting that ballot will automatically update their party affiliation. The legislation also removes the previous requirement that voters must be affiliated with a party by a specific deadline prior to the primary election.

Key changes include the insertion of provisions that allow voters to declare or change their party affiliation at the polling place and the elimination of the 55-day deadline for changing political party membership. The bill clarifies that mail-in ballots will include instructions regarding the implications of voting in a primary election for a party different from the voter's registered affiliation. Overall, the bill aims to enhance voter participation and streamline the process of changing party affiliation in New Jersey's primary elections while maintaining the requirement that a voter can only complete one political party primary ballot.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 19:23-45.1, 19:31-6.4, 19:31-13.2, 19:62-7, 19:63-8, 19:63-11, 19:63-17, 19:63-22