Our Revolution New Jersey calls on Governor Murphy to enact an all Vote by Mail election in the July 7^th primary.  Just yesterday, an interagency report from the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services said that there could be 3,000 coronavirus related deaths daily in the United States in June, which would be approximately 110,000 deaths in the five weeks leading up to the primary. As we know, New Jersey will have a disproportionate share, as it has had all along.

Knowing this, we support an all Vote by Mail primary for the following reasons:

One, in 2016 over 1.3 million people voted in the primary. Why would we risk exposing some portion of roughly 1 out of every 7 New Jersey residents to the virus when we have the means to avoid this entirely? In other states countless poll workers have contracted coronavirus after working in an election.  The facts are some number of people will get exposed, some number will get sick and, sadly, some will die. If we can save just one life, isn’t it worth it? Especially, when we have the means to conduct a safe and fair election anyway.

Two, an in-person primary discriminates against a number of demographic groups, including the handicapped, low income voters, and people with compromised immune systems, such as diabetics and cancer patients, and the elderly who have been shown to be highly susceptible to the disease.  Again, why would we risk exposing these groups to the virus when we simply don’t have to?

Three, a number of county political organizations across the state have moved their July 7^th county committee elections, which are on the same ballot, to the following year out of concern for the coronavirus. These organizations have run elections for decades, if they feel having their committee elections this year is too dangerous, then maybe we should listen to them about having any in-person election.

Three, a number of states have all Vote by Mail primaries as a matter of routine. They work. They are effective. We should do the same.