Fought over for decades, the “county line” — sometimes called the party line — could be a thing of the past in New Jersey politics.
Two counties, Burlington and Middlesex, have formally agreed to settle a lawsuit first brought by the New Jersey Working Families Party in 2020, seeking to abolish New Jersey’s long-standing ballot design that favors candidates endorsed by county political leadership in primary elections.
NJ Spotlight News spoke with Antoinette Miles, state director of New Jersey Working Families Party, about the implications both legally and politically.
“It’s a recognition that the line… is on its way out the door,” she said. “It’s the end of the county line as we know it, and moving towards a fair ballot statewide.”
The ruling earlier this year by Judge Zahid Quraishi that abolished the county line for Democrats in the June primary had no impact on Republicans. This week’s settlement announcement and others possibly to come will change that and the layout of ballots will take place for both parties.
“We’re pushing for a robust democracy nationally, and we need to carry those principles to our home state in New Jersey as well,” said Yael Bromberg, principal of Bromberg Law and attorney for plaintiffs in the case. “And of course that applies to both parties. This is about the will of the voters. The constitution starts out with we the people, and this is about empowering the voters and ensuring that they have fair voting rights.
“This is a new day for democracy in New Jersey,” she said. “It’s a new era of politics in New Jersey, and our plaintiffs are prepared to continue litigating if necessary.”
Bromberg represented the plaintiffs in each of the court cases, and said there is strong pushback from county clerks from both parties across the state, filing to have the cases dismissed. She said Democratic county organizations also fought to keep the line.
Now the settlement with the two counties, as well as a settlement announced yesterday with the Middlesex County Democrats, marks a big victory, Bromberg said. And Rutgers University professor Julia Sass Rubin predicted more challenges to come before the court, and more settlements to follow.
“[Fighting the challenges] doesn’t seem that it’s a good use of taxpayer dollars, and I suspect that most taxpayers would not want their taxpayer dollars spent that way,” Rubin said. “But I suspect that if more county clerks choose to settle, that it will impact Republicans the same way.
Rubin said there are still plenty of other benefits to county organizations’ backing. “Boots on the ground to get people to vote, the money they can pour in, you’re still looking at a 12 to 17 point advantage just from having the county line,” she said.
Looking to 2025, only two of the seven declared gubernatorial candidates so far have even responded to questions about their positions on the county line.
Democratic Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop said, “It’s great to see our state moving in the direction of being more accountable to the people than the political bosses. The fight is far from over and the next step is encouraging primaries next year to move the power away from the political bosses that have monetized the county line system for personal gain and towards candidates who will answer only to the voters.”
Republican state Sen. Jon Bramnick offered no comment.