HOBOKEN — Councilman-At-Large Ravi Bhalla announced Friday that he will introduce an ordinance at the City Council’s Jan. 20 meeting seeking to enact legislation that would require local municipal elections to be held in November instead of May.
The initiative is in response to state legislation, passed by both the New Jersey State Senate and the New Jersey State General Assembly, that would allow municipalities to hold their local elections on the same date as general elections, in order to save on costs of multiple elections and maximize voter turnout.
“This new legislation would not only save our city money,” Councilman Bhalla said, “but also address fatigue among voters who have simply seen too many elections this past year. We asked Hoboken residents to cast their vote four times in 2009, which resulted in voter fatigue and avoidable expense. In addition to saving money, coordinating the timing of local elections with state and national elections will maximize voter turnout for our local elections.”
In 2009, the City of Hoboken spent about $160,000 for the May 12 mayor/council and June 9 runoff elections.
“If the city had held the local municipal election on the same day as the general election,” Bhalla continued, “it would have saved our city thousands of dollars. I applaud both houses of the State Legislature for passing this important piece of legislation.”
Hoboken’s next City Council meeting will be held on Jan. 20 in the City Council chambers at Hoboken City Hall, 94 Washington St., at 7 p.m.