Vote in Your New Jersey, Somerset County, and Local Primary Election this Week

By Barbara A. Preston | Posted June 1, 2023

The primary election, in which members of a political party vote to choose a candidate to represent them in the general election, is this week, culminating on June 6. Nominations for Montgomery Township Committee, Rocky Hill Borough Council, State Senate and General Assembly for the 16th legislative district, and for the Somerset County Board of Commissioners are all uncontested.

State Senate

In the primary for State Senate for the 16th district, incumbent Andrew Zwicker is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination, and Michael Pappas is unopposed for the Republican nomination. Zwicker defeated Pappas in the 2021 general election for state senator.

New Jersey’s 16th Legislative District contains parts of four different counties. Its boundaries changed after last year’s redistricting. It now covers five communities in Somerset County (Branchburg, Hillsborough, Millstone, Montgomery, and Rocky Hill); seven municipalities in Hunterdon (Clinton town and township, Flemington, High Bridge, Lebanon Borough, Raritan and Readington); Princeton in Mercer; and South Brunswick in Middlesex .

Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans, 36 percent to 26 percent, with the plurality of voters not affiliated with a party, according to NJ Spotlight. The district is currently represented by three Democrats, two of whom are seeking reelection.

General Assembly

General Assembly primary candidates for two posts in the 16th district are incumbent Roy Freiman and Mitchelle Drulis for the Democrats and Ross Traphagen and Grace Zhang for the Republicans. Democratic incumbent Sadaf Jaffer, who is a Montgomery resident and the township's former mayor, has announced that she will not seek re-election to a second term.

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Somerset County Board of Commissioners

In the race for Somerset County Board of Commissioners, incumbents Paul Drake and Douglas Singleterry are seeking the Democratic nomination and are both unopposed. Newcomers Donald Lemma and Daniel Gallic are unopposed in seeking the Republican nomination.

Voters may vote early in-person, using a voting machine during a three-day period from June 2 to June 4 from 10 am to 8 pm on Friday and Saturday and from 10 am to 6 pm on Sunday at any early-voting poling location in Somerset County. The closest early voting location for Rocky Hill and Montgomery residents is: The Montgomery Municipal Building, 100 Community Drive, near the Route 206 and Orchard Road intersection in Skillman.

Poll Locations Open on June 6:

For Montgomery Township Voters

>>Click to find your polling place.

For Rocky Hill Voters

Rocky Hill Borough Hall 15 MONTGOMERY AVE ROCKY HILL, NJ 08553 Get Directions Polling Place Hours Primary Election hours: 6 am to 8 pm

Independent candidates do not participate in this election. Only Republican and Democratic registered voters may cast ballots. Unaffiliated voters may declare a party up to and on election day. Currently, only the Republican and Democratic parties use a primary election system to select nominees for the general election, to be held on November 7.

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