COURT HOUSE — The Cape May County Clerk’s office is back on track preparing ballots for the June primary after a statewide lawsuit forced County Clerk Rita Fulginiti’s work on the absentee ballot mailings to halt, literally, in mid-print.

A lawsuit filed by Senatorial candidate U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1st) in April against 21 county clerks’ offices complained of various alleged irregularities in the clerks’ procedures that determined where his name would appear on the ballot.

The Appellate Division ordered clerks to redraw their ballots, which Fulginiti did on April 29.

Fulginiti originally drew the ballot placement on April 17, which was one of 21 drawings Andrews complained of. The ballot drawing process is mandated to be “fair and reasonable.” Candidates can also request in advance to be “bracketed” or listed along with others of the same political affiliation. If the affiliate’s designated leader approves, those requests are routinely granted. Andrews originally ended up bracketed in Column 2, with Lautenberg in Column 1 here. Andrews is now in Column 1.

The Appellate Division ruled that all senatorial candidates should be drawn at the same time, and that their position then controls those other candidates bracketed with them, County Counsel John Porto told the Herald.

Fulginiti gave The Herald a chronology of events Monday. According to Fulginiti:

• Friday, April 25 was the date by which the County Clerk was to begin mailing absentee ballots (40th day prior to election). She was unable to do so because the Andrews vs. Rajoppi matter was pending in the Appellate Division.
• Tuesday, April 29 late morning – Appellate decision required 11 county clerks, including the Cape May County Clerk, to redraw for ballot position.
• Tuesday, April 29 3 p.m. Cape May County Clerk redrew for ballot position for both parties.
• By 4 p.m. the County Clerk had sent the revised ballot information to the contract printer Election Graphics Inc. in North Bergen.
• Tuesday, April 29 approximately 4 p.m. the clerk received word of the Supreme Court filing on behalf of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee. Before the end of business we were in contact with the printer to ensure that the first ballot proofs were preserved and they would work on the second ballot proofs but not print until they received further instructions.
• Thursday, May 1 after 5 p.m. we received word that the Supreme Court denied the matter.
• Friday, May 2 The 128 Republican and 128 Democratic ballots were proofed (again) and the order to print absentee ballots and machine ballots was given to the printer.
• Monday, May 5 The County Clerk received a portion of the Republican Absentee Ballots and began folding the ballots
• Tuesday, May 6 The County Clerk received the remainder of the Absentee Ballots of both parties, folded and began mailing. 147 ballots were mailed on May 6. The Election Board Warehouse received the machine ballots.
• Wednesday, May 7 the remainder of the processed applications for approved Absentee Ballots were mailed. 347 ballots were mailed on May 7.
• By Thursday, May 8 the County Clerk processed the applications by mail and mailed the day’s approved ballots – 39.
• All Civilian Absentee Ballots to overseas voters were sent via US Express Mail. All Military Absentee Ballots were sent by First Class Mail to their APO. All Civilian Absentee Ballots sent within the USA were sent by First Class Mail.
• “We are currently proofing the audio portion of the 128 Republican and 128 Democrat machine ballots as well as the provisional ballots and emergency ballots,” said Fulginiti. “The printer is now printing the sample ballots for 14 municipalities. After we complete the Spanish proof for Wildwood and Woodbine the printer will receive the order to print,” she said.

The next deadline, said Fulginiti, will be May 28, the day by which the sample ballots must be mailed. Our printer drops them before that at our contract mail house Redmond BCMS, Inc. of Denville. They are mailed out of the Bellmawr Postal Distribution Center.

• The emergency ballots have to be ready in time to deliver to the Election Board Warehouse to put in each machine going out to a polling place. The provisional ballots have to be ready in time to assemble into the provisional bags in time to distribute them to all the municipal clerks for distribution to polling places in advance of the election.

June 3 is the Primary Election date.

“We process absentee ballots by mail through May 27,” said Fulginiti. “From May 28 to June 2 at 3 p.m. we process absentee ballots for voters who appear in person or by a designated messenger.”

Contact Avedissian at (609) 886-8600 Ext 27 or at: savedissian@cmcherald.com