TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey’s race between Jack Ciattarelli and Mikie Sherrill has officially begun as early mail-in ballots are now being received across the state. The first absentee ballot report shows 514,998 requests from Democratic voters, 173,980 from Republicans and 202,925 from other parties as the six-week voting window opens.
The number of Democrats requesting mail-in ballots currently exceeds the combined total of Republicans and independents. According to state records, New Jersey has about 2.5 million registered Democrats, 1.6 million registered Republicans and 2.4 million independents.
State election officials note that the permanent absentee ballot request list has remained stable for the past five years, as have rates of return. Historically, Republicans tend to return their ballots slightly faster at the start of the voting period, but Democrats typically overtake them and finish a few points ahead once all mail ballots have been counted.
As far as counted ballots returned on day 1, Democrats lead with 66 ballots, Republicans with 29 ballots, and independents with 14 ballots returned.