N.J. voting process ready for reforms

A proposal by a group of state Assembly members to move up the presidential primary date in New Jersey is a measure that is long overdue.

Assembly Majority Leader Joseph J. Roberts Jr. (D-Cam-den, Gloucester) and a group of six of his Democratic colleagues recently announced their support for an 18-point package of legislation geared toward reforming the state’s election process.

There are some good ideas within the “Every Voter Counts” initiative, such as the consolidation of election dates to save money (pairing school board and school budget elections with fire district elections, for example), the option to vote early, a requirement for machines to produce paper receipts for voters and changing the registration deadline from 29 days before an election to 15 days before an election.

During the primary season this past spring, New Jersey’s voters were once again forced to watch from the political nosebleed seats as many other states with so few issues in common with ours decided whom we could vote for as the next president. This still stings for those who passionately, but powerlessly, rooted for Vermont Gov. Howard Dean this year or Arizona Sen. John McCain in 2000.

Garden State residents are tired of watching states like New Hampshire, South Caro-lina and agrarian Iowa, with its archaic, horse-trading caucus system, determine our nation’s future.

Issues like ethanol subsidies and the right to fly the Confed-erate flag have nothing to do with this state’s more than 4.6 million registered voters.

As Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (D-Mercer, Middle-sex) said, “We are one of the nation’s bellwether states, yet in presidential primary politics we are virtually nonexistent. New Jersey voters deserve better. They deserve their voices to be heard in national politics.”

We agree completely.

It will be four more years until the presidential primary comes again — plenty of time for our leaders to make this change.