Registered voter turnout for such elections in New Jersey averages between 20 to 25 percent.
“Control of the legislature is not at stake,” said. Professor Ben Dworkin, director of the Rowan Institute for Public Policy and Citizenship. “Only the most committed people will show up. This is in contrast to the presidential election next year when we expect turnout to be 75 percent of registered voters.”
Dworkin says some historically republican seats across the Garden State will face tough reelection bids, attributing it to a growing number of registered democrats in recent years. The general election is Tuesday, November 5th.
“12 years ago, 1997, democrats had a registration advantage over Republicans statewide of about 290,000. Today that margin is one million. Where we find they’re living is in these traditional Republican counties,” Dworkin said.
Residents who want to register to vote can visit the NJ Division of Elections website. The general election is Tuesday, November 5th.