Down the Ballot in Hudson County: County Offices and School Boards

The races at the top of Tuesday's ballot get the most attention, but Hudson County voters will also find contests further down the ballot that affect services closer to home. Depending on your municipality and district, that can include county offices, municipal positions and, in some communities, school board seats. Your sample ballot is the complete list of what you personally will decide.

County government in Hudson County handles functions that touch daily life in Jersey City, including county roads and parks, the county court system and elections administration through offices such as the county clerk and the board of elections. The Board of County Commissioners serves as the county's legislative body, approving budgets and policies for those services.

School board elections matter for a straightforward reason: boards set policy for local public schools, approve budgets within the rules that govern them and hire superintendents. In a city as large and diverse as Jersey City, questions about facilities, programs and funding are decided in part by the people voters choose for these seats, even though these races often receive far less coverage than federal contests.

Because down-ballot races vary so much by address, the most useful step before Tuesday is to read your entire sample ballot in advance. It was mailed to registered voters and is also available through Vote.NJ.gov. Note any local questions or public measures on your ballot as well, since ballot questions require a yes or no decision and the wording can be dense if you are reading it for the first time in the voting booth.

Polls are open Tuesday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. statewide. Taking five minutes tonight to review the full ballot, confirm your polling place and decide how you will handle any mail ballot you still hold will make your vote on Tuesday faster and more complete, from the Senate race at the top to the last local question at the bottom.