If you’re not in-the-know, The Line is where you want to be on the ballot if you’re running for office in New Jersey. Candidates granted The Line by NJ’s political gatekeepers are almost assured of victory, especially in a primary election. That’s why NJ’s powerful political machines invest so much time and treasure into determining who gets the line and (perhaps more importantly) who doesn’t.
Topic
ballot rigging
A Senate Candidate Accused of Nepotism Has Another Edge: The Ballot
No New Jersey legislative incumbent chosen to run on the county line in all of the counties he or she represented has lost a primary election since 2009, according to a recent study by a Rutgers University professor, Julia Sass Rubin.
US Senate candidates urged to help end NJ’s ‘party line’ ballot
Nearly every state legislative incumbent who faced a challenge over the last two decades and had the party line in every county won reelection, according to a study by Rutgers University professor Julia Sass Rubin.
Progressives want every Senate candidate from NJ to back a change to state’s ballot designs
Research by Julia Sass Rubin of the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University shows that placement on the county line gives candidates an average of 38% more votes than their competitors, and no state legislative incumbent has lost a primary since 2009 when they’ve been put on the county line.
The Weird Gimmick That May Decide New Jersey’s Next Senator
Rubin—who is neutral in the race—told The Daily Beast it’s possible that candidates can overcome the county line, citing a 2020 example when a county-backed political science professor lost in the primary to Amy Kennedy, the wife of former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-NJ).
How big an advantage does winning the party line really deliver?
“You can see the impact that the county line has on both parties in recent legislative races. Over the last few years, three incumbent female legislators lost their primaries after losing the county line in all or some of the counties in their districts.”
Tammy Murphy’s senate runs raises concerns over New Jersey ballot practices : NPR
No incumbent on the county line has lost a primary election since 2009, according to the researcher, Julia Sass Rubin, a professor at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.
Understanding the party line in NJ
“You can see the impact that the county line has on both parties in recent legislative races. Over the last few years, three incumbent female legislators lost their primaries after losing the county line in all or some of the counties in their districts.”
Video: Prof. Julia Sass Rubin on Reporters Roundtable – Party line’s impact on U.S. Senate race
On Reporters Roundtable, David Cruz talks Julia Sass Rubin, an associate professor with Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning Public Policy, about the power of the party line, how it could affect NJ’s U.S. Senate race and efforts to abolish it.
Video: Prof. Julia Sass Rubin explains how NJ primary ballots with “county lines” lead to unfair advantages
“It’s not just that you have a good ballot position, which you do on the county line,” said Julia Sass Rubin, the Rutgers report’s chief author. “It’s also that everyone else has a pretty bad ballot position… And there’s no other states that do things this way.”
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