TRENTON, April 15, 2016—Voters in 17 New Jersey school districts will go to the polls on Tuesday, April 19, to select members of their local school boards, the New Jersey School Boards Association reported today.
A total of 83 candidates, half of them incumbents, have filed to run for the 52 open seats on ballots in the 17 districts. In all but one of the districts, voters will also act on local revenue to fund proposed 2016-2017 school budgets.
In the 17 districts holding elections on April 19, the ratio of candidates to open school board seats is 1.59 to 1. That figure is higher than in the November 2015 General Election when there were 1.22 candidates for each open seat statewide.
Until 2012, all of New Jersey’s school districts with elected boards of education, more than 540, held their annual elections in April. Legislation enacted that year permitted communities to move their school board elections to the General Election date in November. The vast majority of communities have done so. In the November election districts, the proposed school budget is not placed on the ballot if it is within the state’s 2 percent tax levy cap.
Statute also permits communities that opted for November elections to switch back to an April date after four years. This year, two districts, Plainfield and Asbury Park, switched from November election dates back to April.
Annual School Elections will take place on April 19 in the following school districts:
Bergen County – Cliffside Park; Fairview; Garfield; Hackensack; Oakland; Palisades Park.
Essex County – Irvington; Newark (a state-operated district with no budget election)
Hudson County – North Bergen; Weehawken
Middlesex County – New Brunswick
Monmouth County – Asbury Park; Neptune Township
Morris County – Riverdale
Passaic County – Passaic; Totowa
Union County – Plainfield
Polling times and locations are available from local school districts or the offices of the county clerks.
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The New Jersey School Boards Association is a federation of the state’s local boards of education and includes the majority of New Jersey’s charter schools as associate members. NJSBA provides training, advocacy and support to advance public education and promote the achievement of all students through effective governance.