Ocean City to Go High-Tech With May 8 Election Results

The City of Ocean City is working on a plan to provide quick results of the highly anticipated May 8 municipal election that will decide four City Council seats and the public ballot question on allowing BYOB restaurants in the dry town.

“With all the technology available today, the city has an excellent opportunity to share updates and results quickly to all property owners, businesses and visitors following the election,” City Clerk Linda MacIntrye said.  “Our challenge is to try and meet the needs of our customers, including technology-savvy citizens, who want election information sent to multiple types of electronic devices.  That’s why this year’s election results will be communicated using some of the newest technology available.”

The polls will be open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8. Working with the city’s Information Technology Department, the City Clerk’s Office developed an election night plan that will offer results in various platforms for residents and guests including:

• OCTV 2:  The city’s government-access Channel 2 on the Comcast cable system will stream live results posted from after the polls close at 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
• OCNJ.US: The City’s municipal website will have dedicated election information and results hosted on the www.ocnj.us/election page in the site.
• QRC Codes: QRC (Quick response code) broadcast on OCTV 2 will target the election results web page www.ocnj.us/election.
• EZ Text (direct response texting): Citizens can text the key words OCNJ RESULTS to 313131 and will receive election result updates via text.  A website link will also be included that directs them to the election results page.
• Twitter & Facebook: The City will send election results through Twitter and Facebook each time the Clerk’s Office updates results on the municipal web pages. 
• E-Book: Upon conclusion of the election, the city will publish an online e-book containing the election result details and summary.  This easy-to-navigate publication can be downloaded, shared, printed and “liked” on Facebook.

For more information regarding election night or to sign up for city email alerts and information, visit www.ocnj.us.