With about a month to go, New Jersey’s registered voters are largely unaware that a primary election for governor will take place on June 10, according to the latest Rutgers-Eagleton Poll.

When asked to state – to the best of their knowledge – when the next election in New Jersey will take place, 4% of participants of an early April poll say June 10; another 20% say it will take place some point in June, including individuals who got the right month but wrong date. Thirty-five percent say November, 1% mention an upcoming special election in their area and 24% say “other.” Sixteen percent are unsure of when the next election will take place.

“Any election not held during a presidential year or not in November has historically seen lower turnout due to less awareness, less interest, and less engagement,” said Ashley Koning, an assistant research professor and director of the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling (ECPIP) at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. “New Jersey’s gubernatorial primaries are the perfect storm for this – typically held in June and never during a presidential year – with turnout in past primaries in the single digits to low double digits.”

Registered voters are no more aware of the primary date than the general population; voters are only slightly less likely to say they are unsure compared to all residents. While a few partisans on either side of the aisle know the exact date, Democrats are slightly more likely than both Republicans and independents to, at least, guess the correct month.

“Since independents are able to change their registration to vote in the primaries or declare their party at the polls in-person, they can still play an important role in the upcoming election, but they are not as tuned in as their partisan counterparts right now,” said Koning. “The reality is, if more independents were aware and declared a party, it could potentially change the game for many of the primary candidates, particularly on the Democratic side.”

Knowledge that there is an election sometime in June increases with age, according to the poll findings. Hispanic voters are less likely than non-Hispanic white or non-Hispanic Black voters to correctly guess the primary date or month.

“Disadvantaged voting groups often go unheard in primaries because they are less aware that they are taking place and therefore less likely to vote,” said Jessica Roman, director of data management and analysis at ECPIP. “Some of these groups are key to candidates’ platforms and potential victories, but those who typically vote in primaries are less representation of the population as a whole and more likely to be affluent and well educated.”

Results are from a statewide poll of 1,058 adults contacted through the probability-based Rutgers-Eagleton/SSRS Garden State Panel from April 1 to April 10. The full sample has a margin of error of +/- 4.1 percentage points. The registered voter subsample contains 966 registered voters and has a margin of error of +/- 4.3 percentage points.

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Rutgers University-New Brunswick is where Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, began more than 250 years ago. Ranked among the world’s top 60 universities, Rutgers’s flagship university is a leading public research institution and a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. It is home to internationally acclaimed faculty and has 12 degree-granting schools and a Division I Athletics program. It is the Big Ten Conference’s most diverse university. Through its community of teachers, scholars, artists, scientists and healers, Rutgers is equipped as never before to transform lives.

ABOUT THE EAGLETON CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEREST POLLING

Home of the Rutgers-Eagleton Poll, the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling (ECPIP) was established in 1971 and is the oldest and one of the most respected university-based statewide polling operations in the United States. Now in its 52nd year and with the publication of over 200 polls, ECPIP’s mission is to provide scientifically sound, nonpartisan information about public opinion. To read more about ECPIP and view all of our press releases, published research and data archive, please visit our website: eagletonpoll.rutgers.edu. You can also visit our Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).

ABOUT THE EAGLETON INSTITUTE OF POLITICS

The Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling is a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. The Eagleton Institute studies how American politics and government work and change, analyzes how the democracy might improve and promotes political participation and civic engagement. The Institute explores state and national politics through research, education and public service, linking the study of politics with its day-to-day practice. To learn more about Eagleton programs and expertise, visit eagleton.rutgers.edu. 

ABOUT THE RUTGERS-EAGLETON/SSRS GARDEN STATE PANEL

The Rutgers-Eagleton/SSRS Garden State Panel is a probability-based panel of New Jersey adults age 18 or older. Members are recruited randomly based on statewide representative ABS (Address Based Sample) design. The ABS sample is drawn from the Delivery Sequence File (DSF) maintained by the U.S. Postal Service. Population coverage of the DSF is in the 98%-99% range. During the recruitment process, full demographic information on panelists is collected. This data is stored securely and used to determine eligibility for specific studies (if needed). The Rutgers-Eagleton/SSRS Garden State Panel is a multi-mode panel. Internet households participate via web while all non-internet households (including those who have internet but are unwilling to take surveys online) participate via phone. Panelists also have the option of taking surveys in their preferred language (English or Spanish).