NJ primary voting is underway as more than mail-in 185K ballots are recorded

With New Jersey's primary just two weeks away, only 186,426 of the more than 680,000 vote by mail ballots sent out had been returned as of May 17.

That’s hardly a dent — there are more than 6 million registered voters across the Garden State who have the opportunity to cast ballots.

Bergen County voters requested 57,914 ballots but only 14,611 have been returned while Passaic County had 26,304 vote by mail ballots requested and only 5,271 returned.

The only counties to see more than 20,000 vote by mail ballots returned are Camden and Middlesex counties with 28,460 of 82,011 and 20,018 of 88,864 respectively.

When is New Jersey's primary?

The primary will be held on June 4, which means there is still plenty of time for voters that are affiliated with a party — or are willing to declare a party at their polling place — to make their plan to vote.

How can you still vote by mail?

Voters interested in a vote-by-mail ballot can go to the state’s vote.nj.gov website to print an application and then mail or deliver it to their county clerk's office. Applications must be received by May 28. Voters can also apply in person at their county clerk’s office by 3 p.m. on Monday, June 3.

Vote-by-mail ballots can be returned three ways:

• Through the mail

• By drop box

• By return to county boards of election

Ballots sent by mail must be postmarked by 8 p.m. on June 4 and received by June 10. Drop box ballots must be put into a secure ballot drop boxes within the voter’s county by 8 p.m. on June 4. Ballots can also be delivered in person to the county board of elections by 8 p.m. on June 4.

These ballots cannot be returned to polling places.

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When is early voting for the New Jersey primary?

Voters can head to any designated early in-person voting location in their county between May 29 and June 2 to cast their ballot using a voting machine before primary election day.

Those polling locations will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

For those that want to vote on the day of the primary, they can head to their local polling place from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on June 4.

“New Jersey’s eligible voters should know we continue to make it convenient to exercise their right to vote,” Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way said. “Whether they choose to participate in the early voting period, which is from Wednesday, May 29 to Sunday, June 2, use a mail-in ballot, or come out on Election Day, voters can find all the information they need at vote.nj.gov. The website makes it easy to check everything from their registration status and polling place location, to county early voting sites and secure dropboxes. It’s a user-friendly experience.”

Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ Primary June 4: Mail-in voting