How Are Election Signatures Verified In NJ? Patch Found Out

NEW JERSEY - Since Governor Phil Murphy made the decision that this year's Nov. 3 election is going to be primarily vote-by-mail, there has been a flurry of inquiries into how the process works.

In order to allay some of those fears, Patch has been speaking with election officials on various topics, including Warren County Clerk Holly Mackey, on how the signature verification process works.

Explanation of the Signature Verification Process for Mail-In Ballots in Warren County (each county may be slightly different):

OVERVIEW

• You sign the certification envelope before returning it.
• Your returned ballot package is scanned into the SVRS. Only one ballot package will be accepted per voter.
• Your signature on the certification envelope is manually compared to the one we have in the SVRS.
• The signature verification process is supervised at all times by two Election Commissioners, one Republican and one Democrat.
• A missing middle name or initial will not result in a rejection. It is the style of your signature that counts.
• If it matches, it is accepted.
• If it does not match after 3 sets of eyes reviewing it, it is conditionally rejected and you will be sent a cure letter.
• If you return your cure letter within the allotted timeframe, your ballot will be accepted.
• If you do not return your cure letter, your ballot will remain rejected and your vote will not count.
• If you receive a cure letter, return it.

DETAILS

The ballot package you will be receiving in the mail will contain, at minimum: Your ballot, the certification envelope, the return envelope (this is postage paid and will have your name and a barcode printed on it, however your party affiliation will not appear) and an instruction sheet.

Once you vote your ballot, you will place it in the certification envelope (CE) and seal it. The CE will have a detachable flap where you will print and sign your name. Do not detach the flap. You then place your CE inside the return envelope and return it to us via the USPS, in person to our office or election board office, in one of the 11 drop boxes located throughout the county or in person at your polling location on Election Day.

"When we receive your ballot we use the pre-printed barcode to scan it into the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS)," Mackey said. "Only one ballot can be received for each registered voter. If a voter returns two ballots for any reason, the system issues an alert when the second ballot is scanned and does not allow the process to go any further. The second ballot is rejected. This is one protection against duplicate voting."

Once your outer ballot envelope is scanned, it will be opened and your certification envelope will be removed. Your signature will be manually compared to the one we have on record in the SVRS. If it matches, the flap is detached and your sealed ballot becomes anonymous and is placed in your municipality’s bin along with all the other returned anonymous envelopes.

"We can start opening them at 12:01 am Election Day. If your signature does not match the SVRS system on first pass, it will be given to the supervising Election Commissioners to review," she said. "If they agree with the mismatch they pass it to the administrative staff at the Election Board for final say. If all three agree that it doesn’t match, the Board of Elections will mail you a 'cure letter.'"

According to Mackey, if you fill out and return the cure letter within the allotted timeframe, your ballot will be counted.

"If you do not return the letter, your ballot will be rejected," she said, noting each county's procedure could vary slightly.

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