Public Advocate attorneys have been on duty in county courthouses around the state in several elections, representing voters who were turned away from the polls. In our after-action report from the 2008 presidential election, we describe the issues our lawyers faced as we represented more than 500 people who had been denied the right to vote.  Read the November 2008 Election Day after-action report.

These successes are built on prior achievements by the Public Advocate's lawyers. In the November 2007 general election, for example, Department attorneys won 32 cases ordering election officials to allow voters to cast ballots. Courts denied relief in only two cases. During the February 2008 presidential primaries, Public Advocate attorneys won 41 of the 47 cases in which they appeared. 

The Election Day courthouse deployment project will continue for the foreseeable future, with Public Advocate attorneys going to selected county courthouses to assist voters in securing the right to vote. 

The Public Advocate released a report in April 2007 explaining the accessibility laws and showing that many polling places still have physical barriers that make it impossible for many senior citizens and people with disabilities to vote at polling places. The federal government first passed poll accessibility laws in 1984 and most recently updated them in 2003, with a requirement that states receiving federal election assistance funds comply with the accessibility law. We issued a second report in September 2007, showing that there had not been meaningful improvements in polling place accessibility around the State.

It is time for all New Jersey counties to come into compliance. The Public Advocate continues to urge state and county officials to guarantee polling place accessibility in all elections, including school, primary and general elections.  We have also supported legislation mandating training, especially in the accessibility laws, so that poll workers are better equipped to fulfill their legal duty to make the voting process easier for everyone.

In the wake of the 2007 state constitutional amendment that repealed offensive and outdated references to the voting rights of people with disabilities, the Public Advocate has worked with state officials to ensure that people with disabilities understand their voting rights.  Likewise, the Public Advocate provided input on the State's Voter Bill of Rights to ensure that it contains accurate information for voters on their rights and recourse if they are turned away from the polls on Election Day.  We also publish an annual letter to voters with disabilities that sets forth their voting rights and responsibilities under the law.  The Public Advocate encourages the wide distribution of this information.

Exit Polling:  The Public Advocate supports the efforts of nonpartisan civil rights workers to teach voters about their rights near polling places on Election Day, and to survey exiting voters about their voting experience. In early January 2009, the Public Advocate filed an amicus brief with the New Jersey Supreme Court in support of these civil rights groups.  In a September 2009 ruling, the Court held that no one -- not civil rights workers, media reporters, or anyone else -- can communicate with voters within 100 feet of the polls on Election Day.  We will continue to monitor the issue to see whether and how the Supreme Court's decision adversely affects these groups' ability to reach voters.

Click below for additional information

• Resources.  See additional resources to help citizens exercise their voting rights and to learn more about election administration and voting.
• Voting News.  Read the Public Advocate's news releases about our efforts to enforce voting rights.
• Reports and Publications.  Learn more about voting rights by studying the Public Advocate's reports.
• In Court.  Read more about the Public Advocate's courtroom advocacy on behalf of voting rights.