Election law attorney Brett Pugach has an enlightening chat with Campus Vote Project Student Advisory Board Member Benjamin Nixon to discuss an undemocratic and arcane law which lends significant electoral advantages to New Jersey incumbents and those who fall in line with New Jersey's political party machinery. Redolent of the 19th- and 20th-century grift machine that was Tammany Hall, politicians' towing of "the county line" is integral to electoral success in New Jersey. Failure by New Jersey politicians to tow the line can result in metaphysical exile to Ballot Siberia - and an almost certain electoral defeat. Students are disempowered by this policy because it reduces the diversity of candidates and the ability of insurgent candidates to mount effective campaigns against incumbents. Brett has some ideas on how to fix the broken ballot and restore equitable democracy in the state, but are the party apparatchiks ready for what he has in store?

If you're a student and want to join the Student Voting Network, you can join us here: bit.ly/svnslack

If you want to find more resources about student voting in your state, check out Campus Vote Project's nationwide database for voting information: https://www.campusvoteproject.org/

Recommended Readings:

https://rutgerslawreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/72_Rutgers_Univ_L_Rev_0629_Pugach.pdf 

https://www.njpp.org/publications/report/toeing-the-line-new-jersey-primary-ballots-enable-party-insiders-to-pick-winners/ 

https://prospect.org/politics/can-progressives-change-new-jersey/ 

https://www.njpp.org/publications/report/does-the-county-line-matter-an-analysis-of-new-jerseys-2020-primary-election-results/ 

Music, production, and editing by Benjamin Nixon 

Beach sound effects obtained from https://www.zapsplat.com