ACLU-NJ Sends Letter to Ocean County Board of Elections Demanding it Cease Unlawful Mass Voter Challenge

The ACLU of New Jersey today sent a letter to the Ocean County Board of Elections urging it to immediately cease its efforts to conduct an unlawful mass voter challenge or face legal liability. The Board’s efforts target Democratic and unaffiliated voters who are registered to vote in Bay Head and purportedly receive their tax bills elsewhere, omitting registered Republicans in the same position. The Board’s actions reflect a stark misunderstanding of the rules governing voter eligibility and offend the integrity of the democratic process, in violation of several state and federal laws as well as the constitutions of New Jersey and the United States.

“The Board has targeted voters based on their constitutionally protected political association and chilled their participation on the eve of an election with total disregard for the laws that prohibit precisely this kind of interference,” said Liza Weisberg, supervising attorney for the ACLU of New Jersey. “We will always protect New Jerseyans’ access to the ballot – we are urging Ocean County officials to do the same.”

The Ocean County Board of Elections sent the targeted voters a letter threatening to challenge their right to vote and requiring them to justify their registered addresses. The ACLU-NJ letter calls on the Board to cease all plans to challenge the eligibility of the targeted voters and send them a corrective letter confirming that their registrations remain active and the fact that their tax bills were mailed to an address outside Bay Head is not evidence that they are ineligible to vote at their registered addresses.

The Board’s actions against the targeted voters violate multiple state and federal laws, including:

• The National Voter Registration Act, which prohibits both “non-uniform” efforts to target voters for list-maintenance purposes and systematically remove voters from the rolls within the 90-day quiet period before a federal election.

• The New Jersey Voter Empowerment Act, which prevents intimidating and deceptive practices that could discourage voters from registering or casting ballots.

• The Constitutional equal protection and voting rights guarantees, as well as the First Amendment, which forbids the government from burdening voters based on their political affiliations.

“As the general election approaches, the ACLU-NJ and our partners remain ready to protect every voter’s ability to cast their ballot,” said Jeanne LoCicero, legal director for the ACLU of New Jersey. “We will not let local, state, or federal officials infringe on New Jerseyans’ fundamental right to make their voices heard.”

To learn more about voting in New Jersey, visit aclu-nj.org/vote or call the national Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to speak with a trained volunteer.