Our Vote, Our Power

Low voter turnout is a persistent problem in this country, and New Jersey is no exception. This is particularly true for state and local elections – including in the Institute’s home city of Newark.

Consistent with the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice’s core belief that the best way to understand behavior is by listening to the community – and that the best way to make policy change is “from the ground up” – we asked Newark residents why they think people don’t vote.

Through these interviews, we identified four primary barriers to voter participation, and then proposed bold policy recommendations to directly address these barriers. These findings and recommendations can be found in our report Our Vote, Our Power: Lifting Up Democracy’s Voices in the Garden State.

Read our report Our Vote, Our Power: Lifting Up Democracy’s Voices in the Garden State.

Read an Executive Summary of the report here.

Watch video of Newark residents discussing why voter turnout is low.