32nd Legislative District state Assembly candidate Katie Brennan is calling the current legislative ballot design proposal “an insult to voters.”
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“This proposal is an insult to voters and flies in the face of a federal court’s order for fair ballots. Instead of fixing a broken system, this replaces old corrupt ballots with new corrupt ballots, and voters deserve better,” Brennan said in a statement.
“As a proud Democrat, I should be able to run on my party’s name and values, but this legislation says I can’t — unless county party insiders give me their approval. That’s ridiculous.”
Bill A-5116 would allow only county party-endorsed candidates to identify as a Democrat or Republican in their slogan, allows for the grouping of candidates running for the same office, and does not allow for computerized randomization of ballot drawings.
Grouping with someone running for another office is also not allowed, which is significant since the gubernatorial race is next year and Democratic candidate Steven Fulop, the Jersey City mayor, has 27 Assembly candidates running on his slate.
U.S. District Court Judge Zahid Quraishi ruled that county lines would be abolished for the June 4th primary thanks to a lawsuit spearheaded by now U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ). Fulop has said he will filed pursue a similar legal remedy if necessary.
“Allowing candidates to be grouped together would give them an unfair edge and recreates the same rigged system we had with the ‘county line.’ It pressures independent candidates like me to associate with someone else just to be seen,” Brennan added.
“Designing a fair ballot isn’t rocket science. Lawmakers need to stop protecting the status quo and start focusing on giving voters a real chance.”
Brennan is currently running as an independent in LD-32, with Assemblywoman Jessica Ramirez the only other declared candidate for the June 3rd, 2025 primary at the moment.
