By Barbara A. Preston for The Montgomery News | September 24, 2026
As always, The Montgomery News and our affiliate public television partner CNJN will once again sponsor a forum by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Greater Princeton Area. This year the forum will be held in the Montgomery Branch of the Somerset County Library System on Wednesday, October 14 at 6 pm.
All nine school board candidates were invited on August 12 to attend the forum, which was tentatively scheduled for October 8 or the 14. Most candidates said they could attend on October 14, so the date was set. Five responded that they would attend. Of the four who responded no, Eric Seguin and Nick Barot had work obligations on the date of the forum.
Candidates Karen Anderson and Gabriela Zayova said no. Zayova said she was not available on either date. Anderson said "I will not be attending. I am not convinced that the question set is broad ranged, nor that the targeted population truly represents all of Montgomery Township."
Montgomery and Rocky Hill voters are invited to submit questions to the candidates to lwvprinceton@gmail.com with "Montgomery Forum Questions" in the subject line before October 9. Questions will also be taken from the audience at the event. The October issue of The Montgomery News, which mails first class to every household in Montgomery Township and Rocky Hill, will have a large ad inviting voters to submit question for the forum to lwvprinceton@gmail.com.
The event opens with a welcome from the League of Women Voters' moderator, who will run the forum and explain the rules and procedures. The moderator is league-trained from outside the Montgomery School Board voting area to ensure neutrality. The league training includes lessons on political neutrality, tact, and fair play.
Each candidate will have the opportunity for a 90-second opening statement. The moderator will then ask the candidates to answer previously solicited questions from the public. Each candidate will have 60 seconds to answer each question. Time for rebuttal is not included but may be allowed at the discretion of the moderator. Questions will not be shared with candidates in advance. There will also be an opportunity to answer questions from the audience. After the Q&A session, each candidate will deliver a 60-second closing statement. Time limits are strictly enforced.
The Montgomery News also donates space in our print newspaper and on our website (themontynews.com) to the candidates who are running for school board so that community members may become informed voters.
To keep it fair and equal, each candidate received the same set of questions for the print and online profiles on August 4 with a word limit of 500 to 600 words. Those who submitted more than 600 were told their responses would be edited to ensure all candidates received the same space. Those who did not answer the questions were not included.
Nine candidates are running for three seats on the Montgomery Board of Education, which represents Montgomery Township and Rocky Hill. Each term is for three years.
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Vote-by-Mail ballots are arriving now. Voters are encouraged to take this opportunity to hear from candidates in person, and to read the profiles, before they vote.
At Your Polling Place on November 3
Vote in person at your polling place, from 6 am to 8 pm on Election Day. Go to VOTE.NJ.GOV for your polling place, listed on the Polling Locations page.
In-Person Early Voting
This option enables all registered voters to cast their ballot in person, using a voting machine, during a nine-day period prior to Election Day.
You can choose to vote, in person, when it’s most convenient for your schedule. No matter where you live in the county, you can vote your specific ballot at any of your county’s designated in-person early voting sites. Find your county’s sites at VOTE.NJ.GOV.
In-person early voting sites will be open Saturday, October 24 through November 1. Hours will be Monday–Saturday, 10 am–8 pm and Sunday, 10 am–6 pm.
Vote-by-Mail
Registered voters can apply for a vote-by-mail ballot by following the instructions found at VOTE.NJ.GOV or contacting their County Clerk. In Montgomery and Rocky Hill, that would be the Somerset County Clerk’s Office.
The clerk’s office has started to send Vote-by-Mail ballots to everyone who requested one.
Somerset County residents who do not receive one by October 9 should call Clerk Steve Peter’s office at 908.231.7013. Or, registered voters can go to his office at 20 Grove Street in Somerville (free parking in the deck off High Street) and get a ballot on the spot. The last day to get a ballot in person from the clerk’s office is November 2.
VOTE and RETURN your ballot one of the following ways…
• Secure Ballot Drop Box: Place your mail-in ballot in one of your county’s secure ballot drop boxes by 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 3. Drop box locations can be found at VOTE.NJ.GOV.
• Board of Elections Office: Deliver your mail-in ballot in person to your county’s Board of Elections Office by 8:00 p.m. on November 3. County Election Officials’ contact information can be found at VOTE.NJ.GOV.
• Mail: Your mail-in ballot MUST be postmarked on or before 8:00 p.m. on November 3 and be received by your county’s Board of Elections on or before November 9. Mail-in ballots CANNOT be returned to your early voting site or polling place.
In mid-October, the Somerset County clerk will mail sample ballots to all voters.
Clerk Peter warns that a sample ballot is not a vote-by-mail ballot.
“This has led to the false rumor that I mail live ballots to everyone, even voters who have not requested Vote-by-Mail ballots,” Peter said. “Sample ballots are just that: a sample to show voters what is on the ballot. Sample ballots are not Vote-by-Mail ballots, and sample ballots cannot be voted.”
