The League of Women Voters of Northern Valley (LWVNV) wants artists and arts organizations to be informed and participate in New Jersey's General Election on November 5, 2024. The League is working to ensure voters find accurate, nonpartisan election information on the voting resource site, VOTE411.org.  To prepare voters in Bergen County with the tools they need to do for the General Election, the LWVNV developed 'Make a Voting Plan'.

The League of Women Voters of Northern Valley encourages voters to visit the VOTE411.org site early. They can access the voter guide for their community on VOTE411.org and make a voting plan to cast their vote in the General Election on November 5.  Each year, VOTE411.org helps voters nationwide, including young adults and first-time voters, find a range of information about voting and elections. This hands-on, accessible site provides a voter's registration status, poll locations and times, information about state and local races, candidates' positions, issue information, registration deadlines, voter eligibility requirements, and more.

Register to Vote: In New Jersey, eligible voters may register to vote online, by mail or in person at the County Clerk's Office. To register to vote, a New Jersey resident must be a United States citizen, at least 17 years old and turn the age of 18 on the election day, a resident of the county in which they reside for 30 days before the election, and not serving a sentence of incarceration as the result of a conviction of any indictable offense under New Jersey’s laws or another state of the United States.

The voter registration deadline to vote in the November 5 election is Tuesday, October 15. If a voter is already registered to vote, they should check if their status is correct and active.  A voter should reregister if they move, change their name, or completed a sentence of incarceration. People on parole or probation may register to vote in New Jersey. Voter registration information may be found on VOTE411.org.

Three Voting Options: First, voters may vote in person at local, designated polling sites from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00pm on November 5. Voters may find their polling location online at www.lwvnj.org or www.VOTE411.org. A polling location will also be shown on the sample ballot, which should be received about a week before Election Day.

Second, New Jersey voters may vote early in-person at a designated early voting polling location. This may be done from Saturday, October 26 through Sunday, November 3 prior to the Election Day on Tuesday, November 5. During these days, the polls are open for early voting from 10:00am to 8:00pm weekdays and also on Saturday and from 10:00am to 6:00pm on Sunday. Polling locations for early voting in Bergen County may be found at https://www.lwvnj.org/vote or www.VOTE411.org.

Third, registered voters may vote using a mail-in ballot for the General Election. In New Jersey, any eligible registered voter may Vote-by-Mail without a reason needed to request this ballot. Mail-in ballots are available to send to all registered voters by the deadline, October 29. The deadline for in-person mail-in ballot applications is November 4 at 3:00pm. Voters may check their Vote-By-Mail status and track their ballot by visiting www.vote.nj.gov.

The League encourages voters to return the mail-in ballot, as soon as possible. Voters may return mail-in-ballots through the U.S. postal system, to an official ballot drop box, or in-person at the Bergen County Board of Elections office. The postage-paid ballot must be postmarked by 8:00pm on Election Day, November 5, 2024 and received by the Bergen County Board of Elections on or before the sixth day after the polls close. For a list of drop box locations in Bergen County, click here. Mail-in ballots may not be dropped off at polling locations.

For information from the Bergen County Clerk's Elections Division office, visit their website or contact 201-336-7020 or [email protected]. Their office is located at One Bergen County Plaza, Third Floor, Room 310 in Hackensack, New Jersey.

The League of Women Voters of Northern Valley, a chapter of the League of Women Voters (LWV), is a non-partisan, grassroots civic organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of public policy issues and influences public policy through education and advocacy. The LWV was an outgrowth of the 19th Amendment passed in 1920 giving women the right to vote. Today, the LWV operates at the state and local levels through more than 700 state and local Leagues in all 50 states and in Washington D.C., the Virgin Islands and Hong Kong.

The League of Women Voters of Northern Valley was founded in 1946 as the League of Women Voters of Closter. By 1964, it included 11 municipalities in the Northern Valley and was renamed the League of Women Voters of Northern Valley. The chapter serves these municipalities: Alpine, Bergenfield, Cliffside Park, Closter, Cresskill, Demarest, Dumont, Edgewater, Emerson, Englewood, Englewood Cliffs, Fort Lee, Hackensack, Harrington Park, Haworth, Hillsdale, Leonia, Montvale, New Milford, Northvale, Norwood, Old Tappan, Park Ridge, River Vale, Rockleigh, Tenafly, Washington Township, Westwood, and Woodcliff Lake.

The organization develops grassroots leadership and achieves widespread credibility because it is strictly nonpartisan. Throughout the year, a range of voters services and programs are provided, including candidates’ forums, registration drives, dissemination of nonpartisan information about candidates and issues, and public meetings to discuss current issues.

Images by Vote411.org and League of Women Voters