Why the Assembly heads ’19 ticket

As New Jersey begins to focus on Gov. Phil Murphy’s mid-term elections, just a reminder that the State Assembly heads the ticket in 2019.

Because of the oddities of the New Jersey election calendar, the Assembly heads the ticket twice in a decade but only every other decade.  After 2019, the next time the Assembly heads the ticket won’t be until 2035.

Legislative redistricting follows the census, which is conducted in the first year of every decade. In the second year of the decade, the full Senate and Assembly run in their new districts for two year terms.  In the fourth year of the decade, Senators run for four-year terms.

Every twenty years, New Jersey has a gubernatorial election in the second year of the decade.  That means that every twenty years, gubernatorial and assembly candidates appear on the ballot with no senate races.

It’s confusing, so here’s a cheat sheet to clear things up: