How, When, and Where Can I Change My Party Affiliation?

A registered voter desiring to affiliate with a party or change their party affiliation must file a new registration application, marking the appropriate box at the top of the form indicating that they are making a party affiliation change. These forms are also available at the Borough Clerk’s Office or at your local Commissioner of Registration Office. Once completed the form must be mailed or delivered to:

Essex County Commissioner of Registration
Hall of Records Room 429
465 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
Newark, NJ 07102

If you have not previously declared your party affiliation you may do so at the polls when you go to vote in your first Primary Election. After that, you may change your party affiliation or change to unaffiliated by filing out the change form no later than 55 days before a primary election.

If you are a registered member of the Green Party, Libertarian Party, Natural Law Party, Reform Party, U.S. Constitution Party or the Conservative Party, you can participate in the convention of that party, according to its bylaws, but you cannot vote in either the Democratic or Republican Primary.

If you are a previously affiliated voter who becomes unaffiliated, you must file the declaration form no later than 55 days before the primary in order vote in either primary.

A newly registered voter, an unaffiliated voter or a voter who has never voted in a primary election, can affiliate with the Democratic or Republican Party on the day of the primary.