Middlesex County conducts June primary ballot drawing; Edison Democratic municipal drawing paused by injunction

Middlesex County Deputy Clerk Deborah Grama held a public ballot drawing on behalf of 21 New Jersey counties to determine ballot order for state, county and municipal offices for the June primary. Grama said the office would draw both Democratic and Republican ballots in an office-block layout and livestream the procedure on the county website.

"Please be advised that due to a temporary injunction order by honorable Judge Toto, we will not be drawing for Edison Democratic mayoral and council candidates at this time," Grama said during the drawing. She asked attendees to fill out a sign-in sheet so the office could email them the results and said questions should be held until the end of the procedure.

Grama described the procedure before each office was drawn: an election official would display paper cards with candidate names, deposit them into a box, shake the box to intermingle the cards, then draw and read each card aloud in order. She said the office will read the offices again at the end in the order determined by the draw.

As read aloud by Deputy Clerk Grama, the Democratic drawing for governor produced the following order: Baraka; Fulop; Gottheimer; Spiller; Sweeney. Other Democratic results read on the record included legislative and municipal lists (as read): Legislative District 12 — Deneen; Legislative District 13 — Bridal, Droolus, Dasuki; Legislative District 17 — Egan, Danielson, Rivers; Legislative District 18 — Karabinchak, Stanley, Benetti; Legislative District 19 — Coughlin, Lopez, Burwell; Legislative District 21 — Kearney, McCurdy, Carney; Cranbury Borough Council — Rogers, Nerum; Monroe Township Ward 2 council — Arminio, Seagull.

On the Republican side, Grama read the drawn order for governor as: Bramnick; Ciccarelli; Cranjack; Spadia (as read). Additional Republican municipal results read on the record included Danellen; Sigmund; Rios; Old Bridge Ward 3 council — Giordano, Riley; Old Bridge Ward 4 council — Rizzoli, Talamo; Old Bridge Ward 6 council — Tier, Von Stenton (as read).

Grama advised the public that the office was livestreaming the drawing and that members of the public could record from a designated area. She provided a contact phone number, (732) 745-4202, and an email address, middlesexvotes@c0.middlesex.nj.us, for inquiries and said results would be emailed to those who signed in.

The drawing concluded with Grama reading the full order again and thanking attendees. Officials did not perform any votes or take formal legislative actions during the session; the only decision taken on the record was to omit Edison Democratic mayoral and council candidates from the drawing because of the temporary injunction.