RUNNING AS A “PARTISAN” CANDIDATE?
If you are interested in running for one of the county or municipal public offices listed above under the designation of either Republican or Democrat at the General Election, you must first run as a candidate in one of the two partisan primary elections held in June. Successful Primary candidates will go on to represent their respective party at the November General Election. Petitions for the June Primary elections must be filed before 4 p.m. on or before the 64th day prior to election. Municipal offices are filed with the municipal clerk; County offices are filed with the county clerk. The number of signatures required on a primary petition differs from one party to the next and from town to town. Click here for petitions and signature requirements.

RUNNING AS AN “INDEPENDENT” CANDIDATE?
If you do not wish to run as a Democrat or Republican candidate in November, you have the option of filing a “direct petition” with the county clerk to run for county or municipal office on the November General Election ballot. All direct petitions must be filed with the County Clerk no later than 4 p.m. of the day of the Primary election. The number of signatures required on a direct petition differs from town to town. Click here for signature requirements. Direct petitions are available under our Candidate Petitions tab. Call our office with questions at 973-579-0900.

RUNNING FOR SCHOOL BOARD?
School board candidates are non-partisan and are elected only at the November General Election; they do not participate in the June primary elections. Petitions for school board are filed with the County Clerk no later than 4 p.m. the last Monday in July. Recent legislation requires the use of electronic petition pages. See our Candidate Petitions tab. Call our office with questions at 973-579-0900.

The 2019 School Boards Association Candidates Kit is now available from the NJ School Board Assn website. Residents interested in board member candidacy can download the free kit, which includes information on:

• Important Dates
• How to Become a School Board Member
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Requirements of the New Jersey School Ethics Act
• Criminal Background Checks
• 2019 School Election and Budget Procedures Calendar
• Campaign Reporting Requirements
• Candidate Briefings

RUNNING IN A FAULKNER COMMUNITY?
Sussex County has four “Faulkner Communities/Towns”:  Byram, Newton, Sparta and Vernon. Persons interested in running for public municipal office in any of the above-mentioned Faulkner communities must contact their respective municipal clerk for petitions and signature requirements.

RUNNING FOR PARTY COUNTY COMMITTEE?
Republican & Democratic County Committee members are elected in the June Primary during odd-numbered years. To learn more about party county committee click Party County Committee. For a petition to run for County Committee click Party County Committee Petition.

Following is a list of county and municipal offices to be voted in Sussex County’s Democratic & Republican primaries for the general election.

COUNTY:
County Freeholder (3-yr term, 1 seat open)

MUNICIPAL: 
Andover Borough
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Andover Township
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Branchville
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Byram  (Faulkner; seats filled at General Election)
No Municipal Public Offices/Seats Open in 2020

Frankford
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Franklin
Common Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Fredon
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Green
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Hamburg
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Hampton
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Hardyston
Township Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Hopatcong
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Lafayette
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Montague
Township Committee (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Newton (Faulkner; seats filled at General Election)
Town Council (4-yr term, 2 seats open)

Ogdensburg
Common Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)

Sandyston
Township Committee (3-yr term, 1 seat open)

Sparta (Faulkner; seats filled at General Election)
Township Council (4-yr term, 2 seats open)

Stanhope
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)
Borough Council (1-yr term, 1 seat open)

Stillwater
Township Committee (3-yr term, 1 seat open)

Sussex Borough
Borough Council (3-yr term, 2 seats open)
Borough Council (1-yr unexpired term, 1 seat open)

Vernon (Faulkner; seats filled at General Election)
Township Council (1-yr unexpired term, 1 seat open)

Walpack
Township Committee (3-yr term, 1 seat open)

Wantage
Township Committee (3-yr term, 1 seat open)

NOTE!!! Effective immediately, legislation signed into law on July 1, 2020 now requires candidates to use and disseminate single electronic signature pages for any petition as long as NJ remains in a State of Emergency due to COVID-19. In addition to electronic signature pages, a complete petition submitted during this period must include:

1. Candidate’s Pledge of Allegiance & Certificate of Acceptance
2. Signed Circulator Statement 
3. Slogan Request form (if you do not want a slogan, write NONE)

Electronic petition pages for School Board and Municipal candidates, along with the other documents required for filing, are available on the NJ Division of Elections website. Also on the site you’ll find instructions on how to prepare, circulate and return the petition.

Completed nominating petitions for School Board may be submitted in person to the County Clerk or via email and must be received by 4:00 pm July 27th. If emailed, you do not have to follow up with the original in the mail. Call 973-579-0900 ext 1501 for email info. 

Municipal nominating petitions for Faulkner elections should be submitted to the respective municipal clerk. Contact your municipal clerk for filing options.

Note that school board candidates are now permitted to use a (three-word) slogan and/or file joint petitions if they wish. Visit the NJ School Board Association website for a school board candidate packet. The New Jersey School Boards Association’s Election Candidates Kit is available for downloading:  NJSBA Candidates Kit.  Residents interested in board member candidacy can download the free kit, which includes information on:  Important Dates, How to Become a School Board Member, Frequently Asked Questions, Requirements of the New Jersey School Ethics Act, Criminal Background Checks, Campaign Reporting Requirements, Candidate Briefings.

NOTE! In Sussex County, the use of a “nickname” on the official ballot will be permitted only if it appears together with the candidate’s full and proper name as registered with the County Board of Elections.

This information does not pertain to Faulkner candidates. Faulkner candidates should contact their municipal clerk for petitions and petition requirements.

2020 JUNE PRIMARY – Signature Requirements for Democratic & Republican Candidates:

Andover Borough
Andover Township
Branchville Borough
Byram Township
Frankford Township
Franklin Borough
Fredon Township
Green Township
Hamburg Borough
Hampton Township
Hardyston Township
Hopatcong Borough
Lafayette Township
Montague Township
Town of Newton
Ogdensburg Borough
Sandyston Township
Sparta Township
Stanhope Borough
Stillwater Township
Sussex Borough
Vernon Township
Walpack Township
Wantage Township

2020 GENERAL ELECTION
Direct Petition Signature Requirements
The deadline to file a direct petition with the County Clerk is 4 p.m.  Primary Election Day.

School Board Candidates:  The minimum number of signatures required on a school board petition (regardless of the district) is 10. The candidate may sign his or her petition.

Candidates who want to reach out to the voters of their respective voting district can obtain “Street Voter Lists” from the County Clerk’s Office. These lists provide voter names, addresses, and party affiliations, and are grouped by Town and District, then in alpha order by Street Name. The lists are printed each October and are available in printed format by calling the Clerk’s Office at 973-579-0900 (there is a fee of 25 cents/district). Candidates can also contact the County Board of Elections for more up-to-date voter lists available in digital format and/or for mailing labels. Call the Board at 973-579-0950 for fees/more information about this service.

Click to view a quick reference of important Election Dates & Deadlines for 2020.

Any candidate who has filed a nominating petition, including school board candidates, must file campaign reports with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) pursuant to the provisions of the New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Act. These reports contain information concerning contributions and disbursements of a candidate’s campaign. Refer to Election Dates/Reports for campaign reporting deadlines. Commencing January 15, 2015 candidates are no longer required to file a copy of their ELEC reports with the county clerk.

Toll free:  1-888-313-3532
Web:  www.elec.state.nj.us (for downloading Compliance Manual, forms, and other information)
Fax:  1-609-633-9854

Click here to view candidate reports filed with ELEC NJ.