To: The New Jersey State House, The New Jersey State Senate, and Governor Phil Murphy
Fix Voter Disenfranchisement in Health Care Facilities
Please sign this petition to the Governor, and your Legislative representatives to ask them to establish a statewide program to ensure that voters, who are willing and able to vote, can file absentee, or provisional, ballots, through hospitals, and other health care facilities, when they cannot vote due to circumstances beyond their control, such as medical emergencies. This should be a required service coordinated through the health care facilities, the local elected officials, and the state Board of Elections. All health care facilities should be able to accommodate voters, no matter when the election. No one who wants to vote should be disenfranchised because of "technicalities".
Why is this important?
When I was admitted to the hospital a week before Election Day, I tried to get an absentee ballot filed in time. The hospital had no accommodation to help people who wanted to vote. Although extraordinary accommodations were made for Hurricane Sandy victims, the effort did not reach the hospitals. One local politician tried to help, but to no avail, due to lack of coordination between counties. I was upset with the failure of the system. Luckily, though, my candidates won. This issue needs to be addressed for voters who may find themselves in similar situations, in future elections.