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A4960
ASSEMBLY, No. 4960
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED MAY 7, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman� LARRY WAINSTEIN
District 33 (Hudson)
Assemblyman� GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ
District 33 (Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
���� Establishes municipal election mobile voting pilot
program.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
establishing a municipal election mobile voting pilot
program and supplementing Title 19 of the Revised Statutes.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� a.� The Secretary of
State, in consultation with the county clerk, county board of elections, and
superintendent of elections in each county, shall establish a mobile voting
pilot program for the conduct of municipal elections, as further provided in
this section. �The mobile voting pilot program shall enable a participating municipality
to allow a qualified voter to cast a vote in a municipal election through the
use of a qualified electronic transmission system, in addition to providing mail-in
ballots and in-person voting, as provided under current law.� The qualified
electronic transmission system shall enable a qualified voter to receive, mark,
and return a ballot electronically, and shall maintain reasonable data security
and voter integrity protections including, but not limited to:
���� (1)�� security auditability;
���� (2)�� end-to-end encryption;
���� (3)�� end-to-end
verifiability;
���� (4)�� multifactor
authentication;
���� (5)�� air-gapping;
���� (6)�� a process for printing
decrypted ballots to create a paper record; and
���� (7)�� biometric or equivalent
digital identity verification technology.
���� b.��� A qualified electronic
ballot transmission system shall provide accessibility to voters with
disabilities, including compatibility with commonly used assistive technologies
and compliance with applicable digital accessibility standards for federal, State,
and local governments.
���� c.���� The Secretary of State
shall procure a qualified vendor to develop and implement the electronic
transmission system described under this section and all the necessary
supporting software and hardware systems to implement the mobile voting pilot
program.� The secretary shall accept proposals from qualified vendors with
experience implementing mobile voting systems in other states. �The municipal clerk
in a participating municipality shall establish and implement a system to
notify voters of their opportunity to participate in the pilot program.
���� In selecting a qualified
vendor, the secretary shall ensure that the mobile voting technology to be used
during the pilot program shall be sufficient to successfully undertake the
pilot program and shall be capable of performing by electronic means all of the
same functions performed to enable a voter to cast a vote during the conduct of
an election.
���� d.��� The municipal clerk in a
participating municipality shall arrange for contingencies to ensure that
voters participating in the pilot program can exercise their right to vote if
the mobile voting technology fails.
���� e.���� The municipal clerk
shall keep a detailed description of procedures and requirements for the
training of election officials and staff on the use of the selected mobile
voting technology, protections to ensure the electronic and physical security
of the mobile voting technology, and the voter information the technology
contains, and planning for any other potential contingencies.
���� f.���� (1)� An electronic
transmission system shall collect only the minimum personal identifying
information necessary to:
���� (i)��� verify voter
eligibility and identity;
���� (ii)�� facilitate the secure
transmission of ballots; and
���� (iii)� conduct post-election
audits and verification.
���� (2)�� Any electronic data
generated by a voter using a qualified electronic transmission system shall be
confidential and shall not be used for any purpose other than voter
participation statistics, election administration, security, and compliance. �Any
electronic transmission system used in a municipal election shall be operated
in a manner that strictly prohibits the sale, transfer, licensing, or
disclosure of voter data to any third party for commercial, political, or
non-administrative purposes. �No vendor, contractor, subcontractor, or
governmental entity involved in the administration of the electronic
transmission system shall sell, monetize, trade, or otherwise exploit any voter
data collected or generated through the system.
���� g.��� The Secretary of State
shall, no later than six months after the effective date of P.L.��� , c.����
(C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), finalize
preparations for the implementation of the mobile voting pilot program. �The
program shall be implemented at municipal elections in participating
municipalities for eight years thereafter.� The pilot program shall terminate
after the submission of the report by the Secretary of State required pursuant
to subsection h. of this section, unless extended by law.
���� h.��� Within 120 days after
the certification of the municipal election for which the mobile voting pilot
program is implemented, the municipal clerk and the county clerk shall submit a
report to the Secretary of State describing all elements of the implementation
of the pilot program in the municipality and evaluating its effectiveness.� Upon
receipt of each report, the secretary shall post each report on the official
website of the Division of Elections. �Within 120 days after the certification
of the last municipal election for which the mobile voting pilot program is
implemented, the secretary shall submit a report to the Governor and, pursuant
to the provisions of section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the
Legislature, evaluating the effectiveness of the pilot program across the
various participating municipalities.� The report shall also recommend whether
the pilot program should be continued, expanded, revised, or discontinued.�
���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.
STATEMENT
���� This bill requires the
Secretary of State, in consultation with the county clerk, county board of
elections, and superintendent of elections in each county, to establish a mobile
voting pilot program for municipal elections.
���� Under the pilot program, municipalities
may conduct municipal elections through the use of a qualified electronic
transmission system. �The qualified electronic transmission system will enable
a qualified voter to receive, mark, and return a ballot electronically, and will
maintain reasonable data security and voter integrity protections including,
but not limited to:
���� (1)�� security auditability;
���� (2)�� end-to-end encryption;
���� (3)�� end-to-end
verifiability;
���� (4)�� multifactor
authentication;
���� (5)�� air-gapping;
���� (6)�� a process for printing
decrypted ballots to create a paper record; and
���� (7)�� biometric or equivalent
digital identity verification technology.
���� The mobile voting option would
be in addition to providing mail-in ballots and in-person voting as currently
offered.
���� A qualified electronic ballot
transmission system will provide accessibility to voters with disabilities,
including compatibility with commonly used assistive technologies and
compliance with applicable digital accessibility standards for federal, State,
and local governments.
���� The Secretary of State will
procure a qualified, experienced vendor to develop and implement the electronic
transmission system and all the necessary supporting software and hardware
systems, capable of performing by electronic means all of the same functions to
enable a voter to cast a vote during the conduct of an election.� The municipal
clerk in a participating municipality will establish and implement a system to
notify voters of their opportunity to participate in the pilot program.� The
municipal clerk in a participating municipality will arrange for contingencies
to ensure that voters participating in the pilot program can exercise their
right to vote if the mobile voting technology fails.
���� The municipal clerk will keep
a detailed description of procedures and requirements for the training of election
officials and staff on the use of the selected mobile voting technology,
protections to ensure the electronic and physical security of the mobile voting
technology, and the voter information the technology contains, and planning for
any other potential contingencies.
���� The electronic transmission
system used will collect only the minimum personal identifying information
necessary.� Any electronic data generated by a voter using a qualified
electronic transmission system will be confidential and will not be used for
any purpose other than voter participation statistics, election administration,
security, and compliance.� Any electronic transmission system used will be
operated in a manner that strictly prohibits the sale, transfer, licensing, or
disclosure of voter data to any third party for commercial, political, or
non-administrative purposes. �No vendor, contractor, subcontractor, or
governmental entity involved in the administration of electronic transmission
system may sell, monetize, trade, or otherwise exploit any voter data collected
or generated through the system.
���� The Secretary of State will finalize
preparations for the implementation of the mobile voting pilot program no later
than six months after the effective date of the bill.� The program will be
implemented at municipal elections in participating municipalities for eight
years thereafter.� The pilot program will terminate after the submission of the
report by the Secretary of State, unless extended by law.
���� Within 120 days after the
certification of the municipal election for which the mobile voting pilot
program is implemented, the municipal clerk and the county clerk will submit a
report to the Secretary of State describing all elements of the implementation
of the pilot program in the municipality and evaluating its effectiveness.� Upon
receipt of each report, the secretary will post each report on the official
website of the Division of Elections. �Within 120 days after the certification
of the last municipal election for which the mobile voting pilot program is
implemented, the secretary will submit a report to the Governor and the
Legislature evaluating the effectiveness of the pilot program across the
various participating municipalities.� The report will also recommend whether
the pilot program should be continued, expanded, revised, or discontinued.� �