Fourteen New Jersey school districts held annual school elections on Tuesday, April 16, electing board members and voting on proposed school budgets.
Twelve budgets were approved. Two were defeated. Proposed budgets were approved in Cliffside Park, Clifton, Fairview, Hackensack, Irvington, Newark, New Brunswick, Oakland, Passaic, Ridgewood, Totowa, and Weehawken. Budgets were rejected in Garfield and North Bergen.
In Newark, the school budget was on the ballot for the first time in more than two decades as the state continues to return control of the district to local residents. Last year, Newark elected its first slate of school board members since the state takeover of the district.
Beginning in 2012, when boards were first permitted to move their annual school election to the date of the November general election, the vast majority of New Jersey districts, about 530, have moved their election date. Districts that have November elections are not required to put proposed budgets on the ballot.