Critic of cheating warns against Faustian bargain with legislative leaders

As debates over ballot design in New Jersey continue to gain traction, Senate President Nicholas Scutari, Senate Minority Leader Anthony Bucco, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, and Assembly Minority Leader John DiMaio released a joint statement to address the concerns raised by various stakeholders.

The lawmakers hinted that that might resolve issues surrounding the unfair advantage of preferential ballot placement that political bosses and power brokers give to favored candidates.

Environmental and civil rights activist Lisa McCormick has been a vocal critic of this kind of cheating and now she is raising doubts about the sincerity of lawmakers who expressed some willingness to relinquish the dictatorial power of party bosses.

Scutari, Bucco, Coughlin, and DiMaio emphasized that they have been closely monitoring the public debate surrounding ballot design in New Jersey.

They acknowledged receiving a letter from the Attorney General, who called the current system unconstitutional on March 17th, and they noted arguments made during a recent hearing in the United States District Court, where several insurgents are litigating to end the ballot rigging system ahead of the June primary election.

“We have listened to the public debate surrounding ballot design in New Jersey, read the letter from the Attorney General of March 17th, and have seen reports of the hearing in the United States District Court on Monday, March 18th,” said Scutari, Bucco, Coughlin, and DiMaio. “We have previously understood New Jersey’s ballot design law to be one that has withstood scrutiny from the New Jersey Supreme Court and has been in place for at least 80 years.”

McCormick noted that for a long time, slavery existed and women were denied the right to vote, but that did not make them morally right, and the system of cheating to deny fair ballot position has always been wrong.

“As many involved in the legal process have pointed out, there is longstanding precedent that the Legislature has the authority to determine the law regarding ballot design and the appropriate discretion used by county clerks,” said Scutari, Bucco, Coughlin, and DiMaio. “Accordingly, the proper authority to consider modifications is the Legislature.”

McCormick said lawmakers have yet to ensure a thorough and efficient system of free public education and they abdicated their responsibility to set up fair elections, as demonstrated by decades of gerrymandering, the Election Transparency Act, and the recent attempt to gut New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act.

“As leaders, we have a demonstrated record of working in a bipartisan way on issues regarding voting rights and the transparency of counting ballots, and we are prepared to work in a bipartisan manner to ensure public trust in a transparent and democratic process in New Jersey,” said Scutari, Bucco, Coughlin, and DiMaio.

The legislative leaders underscored the longstanding precedent that grants the Legislature the authority to determine laws regarding ballot design and the discretion used by county clerks. They expressed their commitment to starting a public process to review and potentially modify the current ballot design law, emphasizing the importance of input from the public in this endeavor.

However, McCormick remains skeptical about the intentions of the legislative leaders and has warned progressives not to be complacent lest they wind up making a Faustian bargain that is misrepresented as a solution.

“I do not want to settle for ‘ballot uniformity’ or anything else that may be less than fairness and equal treatment,” said McCormick. “With a victory in the fight, we still have to deal with ballot rigging, gerrymandering, and financial obstacles to waging an effective campaign.”

“A host of measures that disenfranchise American citizens also remain to be resolved but the most important thing is that Americans must rise to the responsibility of citizenship,” McCormick said. “When I got 159,998 votes and Menendez received 262,477, there were 1.4 million New Jersey Democrats who failed to show up at the polls. CNN and CBS News lied by reporting that I did not exist, while most pollsters and journalists ignored our campaign and virtually nobody contributed money, but people who Googled could have learned that there was a valid alternative to the greedy, warmongering, and ineffectual, indicted incumbent.”

She has been a vocal critic of the ballot rigging system, highlighting its impact on independent candidates and the broader democratic process.

McCormick’s efforts to end ballot rigging in New Jersey have involved a combination of legal challenges, advocacy for electoral reform, and leading several frontal assaults on the political establishment.

A longtime critic of the ballot rigging system, McCormick offered to share valuable placement with any Democrat who was running against an establishment candidate in the 2018 Democratic primary, where she was guaranteed one of the first two lines or columns.

She spearheaded a slate of 25 candidates that captured 47 percent of the 2010 primary vote in Union County and offered a spot in one of the first two ballot columns to any Democrat willing to join her in June 2018, when she took four of ten ballots away from incumbent US Senator Bob Menendez.

Now McCormick is raising public awareness about the systemic issues that contribute to unfairness and lack of transparency in the electoral process, and expressing doubt about the sincerity of the statement from Scutari, Bucco, Coughlin, and DiMaio.

That statement comes amidst a federal court case that is challenging the legality of the state’s ballot design practices, ahead of the upcoming June Democratic primary.

Insurgent federal candidates have filed a lawsuit seeking an end to what they perceive as an unfair advantage given to establishment candidates through ballot placement.

The broader debate around ballot design in New Jersey has drawn attention to concerns about electoral fairness and transparency. As discussions and legal proceedings unfold, stakeholders across the political spectrum are closely watching developments to ensure a more equitable electoral process in the state.

McCormick’s past efforts to challenge ballot design practices included a First Amendment challenge filed alongside law professor Eugene Mazo.

That case aimed to address unconstitutional restrictions on campaign slogans that are quintessential to the practice of ballot rigging in New Jersey.

“Voters often lose interest in process stories,” said McCormick. “But it is important to remember that our votes are the only protection we have against the dangers of unchecked ambition and the selfish pursuit of power.”