On the Ballot: Entire Legislature up in November Election

In 2023, the state’s legislative session was full of victories for older New Jerseyans: property tax relief for older residents, a new council to look at drug prices and a cap on certain pharmaceutical costs.

But there’s still work to be done: paying for and executing those new laws. That’s why activists are so focused on the November election.

“We can’t rest on our laurels,” says Ingrid Reed, 87, the retired director of the New Jersey Project at the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University–New Brunswick and an AARP New Jersey volunteer.

On Tuesday, Nov. 7, voters will choose all 120 members of the New Jersey Legislature — 40 in the Senate, 80 in the General Assembly. Only a handful of other states are holding legislative or statewide elections this year, meaning political experts will be paying close attention to the results to gauge the mood of the electorate in advance of next year’s presidential election.

Top of mind for many older residents, political scientists say, is property tax relief. The Stay NJ Act, passed and signed into law this year, provides a credit on 50 percent of the property taxes paid for certain homeowners 65 and older; they can get up to $6,500 in relief.

The credit is designed to “help residents stay in their own homes and communities — which really is where everybody wants to be,” says Evelyn Liebman, director of advocacy for AARP New Jersey.

Adds Micah Rasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University in Lawrenceville: “Control of the legislature for the next two years will have an enormous impact on whether Stay New Jersey gets fully implemented.”

Drug prices a target

Another 2023 law that could be affected by the next legislature is a prescription drug affordability council, which will recommend to the governor and legislature ways to make prescription drugs more affordable, Liebman says.

The incoming legislature will tackle new issues, too, including ways to encourage accessory dwelling units that help older residents stay in their communities, and a proposal to give residents a tax break to help defray out-of-pocket family caregiving costs. AARP backs that idea, which would offer a $675 annual income tax credit, Liebman says.

Who turns up at the polls is especially important, Rasmussen says, because legislative elections generally aren’t a huge draw for voters. “A small group of highly committed voters can make a difference,” he says.

The state's politics can be polarized, some political scientists say. New Jersey has 40 legislative districts, each with one senator and two assembly members. Of the 40 districts, all but two (Districts 11 and 12, both including parts of Monmouth County) have three lawmakers of the same party.

Democrats have comfortable margins in both chambers, says Matthew Hale, an associate professor of political science and public affairs at Seton Hall University in South Orange. Gov. Phil Murphy (D) is term-limited and won’t be eligible to stand for reelection in 2025.

This is the first state legislative election since new districts were drawn as part of redistricting after the 2020 census. More than 20 General Assembly members will retire — some, Rasmussen says, after many years of service, and others because district lines changed and they didn’t want to start over in a partly new district.

Redistricting also means voters should check whether their polling places have changed, Liebman says. For details, go to aarp.org/njvotes.

Tamara Lytle is a writer living in Northern Virginia.

For more on advocacy

• AARP NJ is Advocating for Fair Prescription Drug Prices
• New Jersey Voters 50+ Want the State to Make Lowering Property Taxes a High Priority
• AARP New Jersey Applauds Passage of Fiscal Year 2023 State Budget