Stuart Shapiro asks Julia Rubin, why New Jersey has long been considered one of the most politically corrupt states. She explains how a consistent pattern of high-profile cases have contributed to this perception, citing the influence of the state’s longtime political machines and the now-abolished “county line” primary ballot that heavily favored party-backed candidates as primary examples. She also walks us through how years of research, lawsuits, and the more recent Menendez scandal have culminated in a major reform that replaced the county line with fairer office-block ballots, leading to more competitive races, higher voter turnout, and a growing number of reform-minded legislators.
Topic
county line
Norcross machine Democrats file suit against Cherry Hill progressives over their election loss
“The voters overwhelmingly chose the progressives,” said Julia Sass Rubin,
“That means the … CDCC-endorsed candidates lost. That’s how democratic elections work. There is no consolation prize.”
A Progressive Perspective: New Jersey primary results reflect triumph of political party organizations
Professor Julia Sass Rubin, the acknowledged guru on the effects of the party line on New Jersey politics, thought the elimination of the county line would reduce the influence of party leaders and politics in New Jersey.
Who were the real losers in the 2025 NJ primary? County machines and bosses | Opinion
“If they can demonstrate that they still wield a lot of power, that will potentially ricochet to fewer candidates running in the future, and we’ll be back to largely where we were before,” Sass Rubin said.
NJ primary 2025: Results highlight weaker party machines
Julia Sass Rubin noted that for decades, the county line had been the key tool enabling political machines to dominate elections, but this year’s results—where party-endorsed candidates lost in multiple counties and Assembly races—demonstrated that voter choice was no longer being structurally constrained.
If the primary election was an ‘earthquake’ for New Jersey, the epicenter was in Camden County
Julia Sass Rubin described the June 2025 New Jersey primary as a historic turning point in state politics, signaling the erosion of long-entrenched county party control following the elimination of the controversial county line system.
NJ Democrats hold their breath as the primary unfolds without the county line | Opinion
“If they can demonstrate that they still wield a lot of power, that will potentially ricochet to fewer candidates running in the future, and we’ll be back to largely where we were before,” Sass Rubin said.
The Political Machine Won’t Decide NJ’s Next Governor
“The political machines adapt. They’re about surviving. If this is all very effective for them, they will do the same thing again,” Rubin said. “If it doesn’t work, if their preferred candidates don’t win, I fully expect them to change the rules again to make it even easier for them to control the outcome.”
Could absence of party line lead to primary election surprises?
“I would say the two most notable impacts so far are that so many Democrats and Republican candidates, including pretty legitimate candidates with a shot at winning, [are] choosing not to go for an endorsement. That would have been unheard of before,” said Rubin, an associate dean at Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.
This year, the NJ primary is actually competitive for a change. Get out and vote | Opinion Julia Sass Rubin
New Jersey’s lack of competitive primaries was one of many negative consequences of the county line primary ballot. Candidates who did not receive preferential ballot positions on the county line tended to drop out, leading to choiceless primaries reminiscent of elections in the former Soviet Union.