| Written and distributed since 2003 by Donald Katz, Esq., Republican State Committeeman for Middlesex County and Counsel, Middlesex County Republican Organization VOTE BY MAIL BALLOTS WILL START TO GO OUT TO VOTERS IN A FEW SHORT WEEKS, ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21st. IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW RECEIVES A BALLOT, MAKE SURE YOU, OR THEY, FILL IT OUT CORRECTLY AND RETURN IT TO THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. SET FORTH BELOW ARE SOME OF THE MISTAKES PEOPLE MAKE WHEN FILLING OUT THE BALLOT AND THUS LOSING THEIR VOTE VOTE EARLY!! Don’t wait until Election Day, if you are not voting by mail, you should vote in person during the Early Voting Period. Why, should I do that, you may ask? There are many good reasons to vote early rather than on Election Day. For example: 1. You are sick on Election Day 2. There is some family emergency that you must attend to on Election Day 3. If you are working, something at work requires you to come in early or stay late so you can’t get to your polling place on Election Day. 4 A weather event that would make it difficult to get out to your polling place on Election Day, (In February of last year, it snowed during the Fire District Elections.) 5. The election machines go down or slow down so that there is a very long line at the polls on Election Day. (In Middlesex County, there have been instances where voters had to wait an hour or an hour and a half to vote and if you couldn’t wait, you wouldn’t have been able to vote. On the other hand, if you vote during the Early Voting Period, there is likely to be no line and you may very well be able to complete the who process in less than 5 minutes.) (Since early in-person voting has been in place, since 2021, I have visited virtually all of the early voting sites, some on several occasions over the years, and I have never encountered a line at any of the locations. Each location has multiple electronic poll book stations and multiple voting machines, so multiple voters can be accommodated at the same time.) 6. You are working the polls on Election Day or working on get-out-the-vote activities for our candidates on Election Day. If you vote early, it will prevent you from having to take time off from your other Election Day activities to go vote at your local polling location. Early, in-person, voting uses the same electronic poll books and voting machines as on Election Day and your voting experience is the same – except it may take you much less time to vote. Your vote is just as secure as if you voted on Election Day. This year, the Early Voting Period runs from Saturday, October 26th through Sunday, November 3rd. The voting hours each day are from 10:00 am through 8:00 pm, except on Sundays when they are from 10:00 am through 6:00 pm. There are 10 Early Voting Sites around the county and you can go vote at any one which happens to be convenient for you. It doesn’t have to be the closest location to your house. The Early Voting Sites for this election, (all of which have been at the same locations they have been for the last several elections), are as follows: 1. East Brunswick – East Brunswick Community Center, 721 Cranbury Road, East Brunswick 2. Edison – Minnie B. Veal Community Center, 1070 Grove Avenue, Edison 3. Monroe – Monroe Public Library, 4 Municipal Plaza, Monroe Township 4. New Brunswick – New Brunswick Hub Teen Center, 411 Joyce Kilmer Avenue, New Brunswick 5. Old Bridge – Old Bridge Library, 1 Old Bridge Plaza, Old Bridge 6. Perth Amboy – A. F. Jankowski Community Center, 1 Olive Street, Perth Amboy 7. Piscataway – John F. Kennedy Public Library, 500 Hoes Lane, Piscataway 8. Sayreville – Sayreville Senior Center, 423 Main Street, Sayreville 9. South Brunswick – South Brunswick Community Center, 124 New Road, Monmouth Junction 10. Woodbridge – Acacia Youth Center, 95 Port Reading Avenue, Port Reading (This building used to be the Hungarian American Citizens Club) DON’T MISS THE IMPORTANT ELECTION DEADLINES REFERENCED IN MY CALENDAR, BELOW: The last day to register to vote is Tuesday, October 15th and if you are the person responsible for filing for credentials for election day challengers in your municipality, that deadline date is Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, the last day to apply, by mail, for a vote-by-mail ballot is Tuesday, October 29th. (After that date, you can still get a vote by mail ballot in person at the county clerk’s office, up to 3:00 pm the day before to Election Day.) POLITICAL TRIVIA: Here are some political trivia questions. I hope you enjoy them. The answers are below, immediately above the calendar: 1. Which First Lady held seances in the White House? 2. The daughter of which founding father had a White House wedding? 3. Who gave a speech known as “The Man in the Arena”? 4. The Teddy Bear got its name after Theodore Roosevelt saved a real bear. True or False? 5. Who was the only U.S. President to serve in the military in both World Wars? 6. Who was the first U.S. President of all 50 states? 7. Which U.S. President appears on the now-defunct $500 bill? DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE FINAL ELECTION DAY CHALLENGER’S TRAINING SESSION WHICH WILL BE HELD ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29TH IN SOUTH BRUNSWICK: IF YOU ARE GOING TO BE A CHALLENGER, BE THERE As previously reported, if you are working as a challenger on Election Day for our GOP candidates and party, you have one more chance to attend one of my challenger’s training sessions before Election Day. The final session will be held on Tuesday, October 29th at 7:00 pm at the South Brunswick American Legion Post, 148 Major Road, Monmouth Junction section of South Brunswick. You don’t need to register in advance for this free training session – just show up. The training session is open to all interested Middlesex County Republicans and congressional campaign volunteers from out of Middlesex County who are from either of the congressional districts that include part of Middlesex County, (the 6th and the 12 CDs). Come and learn what can and cannot be done in the polling places on Election Day. CONDOLENCES… My deepest condolences to Carole Mayti on the recent death of her husband, John Mayti. Both Carole and John were former Republican County Committee members in Woodbridge Township. DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS In almost all of our municipalities, the school board elections are now in November, at the same time as our regular general elections. The percentage of your property tax dollars controlled by your local school board far exceeds the percentage controlled by your local municipality and the county combined. So, it is in your best interest to pay attention to the school board races and vote for the people who you think will do the best job. To that end, even though school board races are officially non-partisan, Dems in any number of towns, either overtly or covertly, support candidates and slates of candidates, so I would suggest you find out if any Republicans are running or perhaps talk to your local Republican leaders to see what they think about the local races before you make your decision. LOOKING FOR ATTORNEYS TO VOLUNTEER ON ELECTION DAY We would like to place attorneys at various critical locations on election day, so that there will be someone available at the other end of the phone line at all times to answer your election day questions, monitor polling locations in potential problem areas, etc. Although election law experience is a plus, it is not necessary – we will train them, either by their attendance at a challenger training session which will be held before the November election, or otherwise. If you know any attorneys who would be willing to volunteer, please have them personally contact me via e-mail at dkatzlaw@aol.com. You, or they, will then be put in contact with our lead attorney who will run the attorney operation on election day, while I am handling my duties at the Board of Elections. Anyone who offers to be a volunteer attorney on election day should be sure to include both his or her e-mail address and his or her cell phone number and he or she should also let me know his or her time availability on election day. (Although all-day availability would be preferable if the attorney can volunteer a block of 4 hours or more, it would be acceptable.) ANSWERS TO POLITICAL TRIVIA: 1. Mary Todd Lincoln. Mary and Abraham Lincoln lost a son before entering the White House in 1861 and suffered another loss when their 11-year-old son Willie died a year later. President Lincoln buried his grief by keeping busy during the Civil War. Mary turned to spiritualists, inviting mediums to perform seances to contact her dead sons from the White House. The President attended once, though he privately dismissed the whole endeavor. 2. The first White House wedding to include a President’s child was held in 1820, when James Monroe’s youngest child, Maria, married Samuel Gouverneur, her cousin and Monroe’s private secretary. 3. Theodore Roosevelt. In 1910, a year after his presidency ended, Theodore Roosevelt gave a speech in Paris formerly known as “Citizenship in a Republic.” It is better known today, though, as “The Man in the Arena” from the passage which goes, “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles … The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena.” 4. False. Theodore Roosevelt had long been a hunter but didn’t exactly show off his best skills on a bear hunt in November 1902. Everyone else in the group had a fruitful hunt, so to help Roosevelt, the guide tracked a 235-pound bear to a watering hole, clubbed it, and tied it to a tree so the President could claim it. As the story goes, Roosevelt refused to shoot the bear. The incident made its way to the Washington Post, which published a satirical cartoon about the President sparing the bear. New York City store owners Morris and Rose Mitchom saw the cartoon, were inspired by the President’s act of heroism, and created stuffed animals in his honor, appropriately naming them “Teddy’s Bear.” The problem? Roosevelt didn’t shoot the bear, but he didn’t save it either. He saw that it had been mauled by dogs so savagely already that he asked that the bear be killed with a hunting knife. Given the dark nature of this true tale, it makes sense that the details are often ignored when talking about this beloved childhood toy. 5. Dwight D. Eisenhower. He was a lieutenant colonel in World War I and was the commanding general of Allied forces in World War II. 6.. Dwight D. Eisenhower. The 49th and 50th states, Alaska and Hawaii became U.S. States in 1959. 7. William McKinley UPDATED CALENDAR What follows is an updated calendar. If you have any municipal or countywide fundraisers or functions you would like me to include in my e-mail calendar from time to time, please contact me at dkatzlaw@aol.com. Please note that organizations and campaigns sometimes provide added information, change dates, or cancel events, which information I include in this calendar if I receive the information in time. Therefore, if you plan to attend an event, please make sure you review the calendar listing in my latest e-mail and, to the extent you may not have pre-registered for the particular event so the sponsoring group will be able to contact you about any changes, you may want to check with eh sponsoring group before you go, to make sure the information has not changed. Also, please be aware that these e-mails are not official MCRO notices or mailings, they are just something I do, voluntarily, to help our Republican Party. October 12 (Saturday 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm) – Trump for President Rally hosted by South Plainfield Councilwoman Melanie Mott. Intersection of Park Avenue and Oak Tree Avenue (by Putnam Park and Shoprite) in South Plainfield. Bring your signs, flags and patriotism! The event can also be found on Facebook events for RSVP’s. October 15 (Tuesday) – Last day to register to vote in the General Election. October 15 (Tuesday 7:00 pm – ) – Middlesex County Republican Women’s Club Meeting. East Brunswick Library, 2 Civic Center Drive, (off Ryder’s Lane), East Brunswick. October 17 (Thursday, Registration 5:00 pm, Approximate Start Time 5”30 pm ) – Perth Amboy Republican Organization Victory Bowl Fun-Raiser (Bowling), Majestic Lanes, 525 Route 9 North, Hopelawn (A Section of Woodbridge Twp.). In advance $30, at the door $40 per person. Questions: contact Sharon at 917-409-8995. Reservations and pay at: https://victorybowl.rsvpify.com. Checks are payable to Perth Amboy Republican Org. and can be mailed to PO Box 753, Edison, NJ 08818. October 22 (Tuesday) – Deadline for filing your list of Election Day challengers for the General Election, with the Board of Elections. (Middlesex County Board of Elections, 26-B Kennedy Boulevard, East Brunswick, New Jersey 08816) October 26 (Saturday 10:00 am -2:00 pm) – Board of Elections Open House at the Educational Services Commission of New Jersey Professional Conference Center, 1690 Stelton Road, Piscataway. Poll clerks, party chairs, and elected officials are invited to visit and work with the election equipment, review processes, and ask questions to Board of Elections clerks and technicians. (Note: this is not official poll clerk training and will not count as mandatory training.) October 26 (Saturday) – November 3 (Sunday) (Sundays 10:00 am – 6:00 pm, all other days 10:00 am – 8:00 pm) – Early Voting Period (Any voter registered in Middlesex County can vote at any of the 10 Early Voting Sites in Middlesex County.) October 28 (Monday 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm) – South Plainfield GOP Candidates’ Reception, The Park Villa, 124 Case Drive, South Plainfield. $200.00 per person, $75.00 county committee/elected officials. For further information and for reservations, contact April Bengivenga at aprilnbob@aol.com or call 908-251-4066. October 29 (Tuesday) – Last day for vote-by-mail ballot applications to be received by the County Clerk by mail in order to vote in the General Election. (Middlesex County Clerk, P.O. Box 1110, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901-1110). October 29 (Tuesday 7:00 pm – ) – Election Day Challenger’s Training presented by Donald Katz, Esq, Counsel, Middlesex County Board of Elections. at the South Brunswick American Legion Post, 148 Major Road, Monmouth Junction section of South Brunswick. Hosted by the South Brunswick Republican Organization. Open to all potential Republican challengers in Middlesex County and the non-Middlesex County portions of Congressional Districts 6 and 12. November 4 (Monday 3:00 pm) – Last day to apply for a mail-in ballot in person (or by authorized messenger) at the County Clerk’s office, (26-C Kennedy Boulevard, East Brunswick, New Jersey), in order to vote in the General Election. November 5 (Tuesday 6:00 am – 8:00 pm) – General Election November 19 (Tuesday 7:00 pm – ) – Middlesex County Republican Women’s Club Meeting. East Brunswick Library, 2 Civic Center Drive, (off Ryder’s Lane), East Brunswick. December 4 (Wednesday) – NJGOP Toys for Tots Holiday Party. Stress Factory Comedy Club, New Brunswick. December 17 (Tuesday 7:00 pm – ) – Middlesex County Republican Women’s Club Meeting. East Brunswick Library, 2 Civic Center Drive, (off Ryder’s Lane), East Brunswick. Please forward this information to any Middlesex County Republican, or other individuals, who you think might be interested in seeing it. Further, if you know of any Middlesex County Republicans who would like to receive periodic reports about Republican-related information I believe might be interesting or useful, please have them send me, Donald Katz, an e-mail to dkatzlaw@aol.com, and I will add them to my e-mail list. By the same token, if you ever wish to be removed from my e-mail list, click “unsubscribe” at the foot of this e-mail. Donald Katz, Esq. Republican State Committeeman – Middlesex County and Counsel, Middlesex County Republican Organization dkatzlaw@aol.com 119 Leeds Lane Monroe Township, NJ 08831 (C) 908-227-9239 Copyright © 2024 Donald Katz, All rights reserved, except forwarding of entire newsletter to Republicans is permitted and encouraged and excerpts may be used for non-commercial purposes provided the excerpts are attributed to Donald Katz |
MIDDLESEX COUNTY GOP UPDATE
