With early voting underway for the 2022 General Election, the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety is taking steps to ensure a fair, free and smooth-running election, officials said. Under the Voter Protection Initiative announced by Attorney General Matthew Platkin, the state will be focused on assisting voters, election officials and law enforcement in resolving any emergent voting-related legal matters that arise during the early voting period and on Election Day (Nov. 8). “The right to vote is sacred and we will do everything in our power to safeguard that right. Now more than ever, it is critical that we ensure that New Jerseyans do not face intimidation, discrimination, or harassment when exercising their constitutional right to vote,” Platkin said. North-JerseyNews.com
Seven percent of New Jerseyans have already cast their general election ballots, with about 43% of all vote-by-mail ballots sent out by county clerks already returned and 457,762 total votes already in. A total of 46,483 New Jerseyans cast in-person early votes in the first two days of the nine day early voting period; 26,658 early votes were cast on Saturday and 19,825 on Sunday. At the same point in 2021—the first general election to utilize early voting—34,077 voters cast in-person early votes in the gubernatorial and legislative election year, equaling a 36.4% increase. Democrats made up 49.5% of all early votes cast statewide, with Republicans at 30.5% and unaffiliated voters at 19.7%. New Jersey Globe
A group called Voting Futures Trust is sending out text messages directing voters to the wrong polling location, New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way warned Oct. 31. “Voters should know that your state and county election officials are the best source for trusted, verified information about our elections,” said Secretary Way. “Voters can check their voter registration, find their polling location, and more at vote.nj.gov. We strongly caution voters against relying upon unverified sources when making a plan to vote.” Similar complaints of misinformation have been lodged against the group by election officials in Oregon, Illinois, California and Kansas. News12 New Jersey
Outside spending has poured more than $15 million into New Jersey congressional races with a week remaining until Election Day—with nearly half of the outside spending in the state has been poured into the 7th Congressional District. Most of the outside spending has aided Tom Kean, Jr. with PACs, social welfare nonprofits, and other groups spending nearly $7.2 million in the 7th District. The Congressional Leadership Fund, the independent expenditure arm of House Republicans, has led spending in the district, pouring nearly $4.5 million into the contest. For Rep. Tom Malinowski, seven groups supporting the Democrat put just under $1.5 million into the race. Most of that money ($965,434) came from the House Majority PAC, the independent spending arm of House Democratic leadership. New Jersey Monitor
Voters are giving Republicans a late boost in support just ahead of the midterm elections, as pessimism about the economy and the direction of the country jumped to their highest levels of the year, a new Wall Street Journal poll finds. The survey, conducted about two weeks before Election Day, suggests that abortion rights are less important in voting decisions than voters indicated in the Summer, after the Supreme Court in June ended the federal constitutional right to abortion. Republicans have regained momentum since then and now hold a slight edge over Democrats, 46% to 44%, when voters are asked which party they would support in their congressional district if the election were held today. The Wall Street Journal
Legal abortions have risen 7% in New Jersey since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, even as they dropped 6% nationally, according to a new study undertaken to quantify how the landmark decision impacted abortion trends. New Jersey was sixth in the nation, with 4,060 abortions in August, up from 3,790 the month the Dobbs decision was issued. Analysis by the Society of Family Planning, a nonprofit that supports abortion and contraception research, confirmed what advocates on both sides of the issue had predicted — that abortion would surge in states that protected or strengthened abortion rights as other states used the court’s Dobbs decision to ban or restrict the procedure. New Jersey Monitor
President Joe Biden threatened to seek a new windfall profits tax on major oil and gas companies unless they ramp up production to curb the price of gasoline at the pump, an escalation of his battle with the energy industry. “If they don’t, they’re going to pay a higher tax on their excess profits and face other restrictions,” President Biden told reporters at the White House Oct. 31. “My team will work with Congress to look at these options that are available to us and others. It’s time for these companies to stop war profiteering, meet their responsibilities to this country, give the American people a break and still do very well.” The Record
Two North Jersey State Senators are calling for changes to current standards requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for workers and students. In the wake of new CDC recommendations, State Sen. Kristin Corrado (R-40) called on the Murphy Administration to halt vaccination mandates for New Jersey school children and State Sen. Anthony Bucco (R-25) cited a recent New York Supreme Court ruling that reinstated more than 1,400 New York City employees who were fired for being unvaccinated, including police, firefighters, and other New York City workers. Bucco called back to the judicial decision which explicitly noted that being vaccinated does not prevent an individual from contracting or transmitting COVID-19. “We know better now. Vaccines aren’t flawless. There is no perfect solution,” Bucco said. North-JerseyNews.com
Authorities detailed the motives of the man who assaulted the husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi in their criminal complaint filed Oct. 31. The assailant’s mission, he told police, was to take hostage and perhaps break the kneecaps of Speaker Pelosi, whom he saw as “the ‘leader of the pack’ of lies told by the Democratic Party.” The man had a backpack stuffed with rope, zip ties and a hammer. The New York Times
Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court to block a House committee from obtaining his past tax returns from the Internal Revenue Service before a Nov. 3 deadline for the material to be turned over. Trump’s request on Oct. 31 marks what is likely to be the final phase of more than three years of legal wrangling over the tax returns. In an emergency application filed to Chief Justice John Roberts, Trump’s lawyers asked the court for a stay to block the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee from accessing the tax documents until further legal briefs are filed before the justices. Democrats talked about getting the returns as a way to assess conflicts of interest or his compliance with tax law. Their legal argument stems from the idea that they will use the returns to assess the IRS program for mandatory audits of presidential tax returns. The Wall Street Journal
A federal judge on Oct. 31 dismissed a lawsuit by Mark Meadows that sought to block two subpoenas from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, including one to Verizon for Meadows’s phone and text data. In throwing out the suit, Judge Carl J. Nichols of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia found that the committee’s subpoenas were covered under the Constitution’s speech or debate clause, which he said protected them from civil suits as legislative actions. The New York Times
Two-in-three Americans support legalizing recreational marijuana and a majority support President Joe Biden’s decision to issue a pardon for individuals convicted within a federal court for simple marijuana possession, according to a recent Monmouth University Poll. The poll found 68% of Americans support legalizing the use and possession of small amounts of weed for recreational use—including 76% of Democrats, 73% of Independents and 52% of Republicans. Additionally, 69% of Americans support the President’s decision to issue a general pardon for individuals convicted on federal charges for simple marijuana possession. North-JerseyNews.com
The Story Dispensary recreational cannabis application heads to its fifth planning board hearing in Hoboken with a group determined to block it says it has discovered details about the business’ lease — including who holds it and who holds options to purchase the property. In an Oct. 28 letter sent to the board by the condominium association at 51-53 14th Street where the business would be located, says that Aaron Epstein, contracted by the dispensary to provide management services, has leased the ground floor of the building and will sublet it to the dispensary, contradicting what Epstein previously testified as to the extent of his involvement in the business. Story’s attorney describes the claims as being “wildly off-base.” The Jersey Journal
As cold and flu season approaches, riders who’ve lobbied NJ Transit to test designating one car per train as a spot that requires riders to wear masks saw their efforts denied. An agency board member cited difficulties that train crews had in enforcing a mask mandate when it was required by federal rules during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea was opposed by a union representing 1,300 conductors and assistant conductors who bore the brunt of enforcing the federal mask mandate. Union officials said crews endured verbal and physical abuse by riders who didn’t want to mask up. NJ.com
And finally….A recap of the Bruce Springsteen interview by Howard Stern. NJ.com
