Three referendums in six months gives Edison some data points

Edison has had three special election referendums in six months, allowing for some decent data points on voter turnout and the effect vote-by-mail in New Jersey.

The Middlesex County township has an estimated population of 100,693.  Edison ranks behind Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Elizabeth as the 5th largest municipality in the state.

A September 10, 2019 special referendum to continue municipal ownership of Edison’s drinking water and sewage treatment operations generated a 19% voter turnout – an unusually high number for a ballot question election held a week after Labor Day – and 21% of voters cast their ballots by mail.    The machine vote was 76%, with the rest of the ballots cast provisionally.

In that race, 84% of voters supported local utilities ownership, with the rest supporting an $855 million deal proposed by mayor Thomas Lankey to allow Suez North American to run Edison’s water system.

Three months later, on December 10, 2019, voters rejected a $189.5 million school facilities improvement referendum by a sixteen-point margin.   Turnout was 11% and 39% of all ballots cast were through the state’s VBM program.

Edison held a third special referendum election this week, where voters rejected a $183.2 million bond issue to expand school facilities and eliminate education in trailers by 24 points, 62%-38%.  Turnout was around 13%, with 29% of voters using VBM ballots.  (This isn’t a final number: some ballots that arrived before the Thursday afternoon deadline have not yet been counted.

Turnout in Edison for the 2019 general election was at 23% — just four point higher than the water referendum.  On that ballot last year were races for State Assembly, sheriff, freeholder, council and school board.

Edison turnout was at 50% in 2018, 39% in 2017, and 64% in 2016.