Many of us know the least about how local government operates, yet your town and county government have a huge impact on your daily life (e.g. taxes, services, and more). Learn how local government works and get local government to work for you!
See County, State, and Federal government links below the structure section.
STRUCTURE [section needs work, just wanted to get thoughts down]
Every township/town/city (technically all are a type of "municipality") has an elected committee or council. We'll use "municipality" and "committee" for simplicity's sake. Some municipalities also elect their mayor, whereas other municipalities have the committee choose one of the committee members to serve as mayor. The role of the mayor varies widely as well -- in some municipalities the mayor is a member of the committee and chairs committee meetings but has little additional power. In other municipalities the mayor is more of an executive officer who does not sit on the committee but may have veto power over its decisions. There are quite a number of different municipal government types in New Jersey! Check out the Wikipedia article on local government in New Jersey for more details (here). Generally municipal committee candidates run under one of the two major parties, or as independent, third party or unaffiliated candidates. Municipal committees are responsible for things like setting property and other local taxes. They have the authority to pass ordinances which function as laws, such as regulations on new construction or picking up after your dog.
Your municipality also has a board of education, or "school board", or may share a school board with one or more nearby municipalities if it is a regional school district.
The next level is county government. In New Jersey, county commissioners are called "freeholders,". They are elected by all voters in Camden County (at large -- we have no county districts, although some counties in the state do elect Freeholders in districts) to serve three-year terms. The term Freeholder is old and has a racist/sexist history (because in the early days only white men could own property and be "free holders") and is likely to be changed in 2020. Freeholders oversee county services like the courts, local roads, healthcare services, voting, etc. The Freeholders in Camden County elect a Director, who chairs meetings but has little additional authority. Unlike municipalities and state governments, the Freeholder boards in New Jersey cannot adopt ordinances that have the force of law for citizens. Their resolutions are about hiring, purchasing, maintaining county parks and roads, and running programs. Counties in New Jersey have a number of varied forms of government like municipalities -- for example, while all have a Board of Chosen freeholders, some have a County Executive as well. Many years ago the LWVCC held a petition drive to change the form of government in this county to include a County Executive who would serve as an elected, accountable leader visible to residents. That petition was unable to collect enough signatures and thus failed.
At the county level we also elect a county Sheriff, a county Clerk, and the county Surrogate.. The county website does a nice job of describing their functions. The Clerk has many roles, including in elections -- read more here. Read about the Sheriff here and the Surrogate here. There is also an appointed Prosecutor and many administrative branches. Check out the list of offices, departments, and agencies here.
The last layer of local government is the state. The NJ state legislature in Trenton has two houses: the Assembly and the Senate. NJ is divided up into state legislative districts and each district's voters elect two assembly representatives and one state senator. And of course we all vote to elect the state's governor. Read more about districts and state and federal representatives on our redistricting page [link].
Local voting districts and party committees?
See County, State, and Federal government links below the structure section.
STRUCTURE [section needs work, just wanted to get thoughts down]
Every township/town/city (technically all are a type of "municipality") has an elected committee or council. We'll use "municipality" and "committee" for simplicity's sake. Some municipalities also elect their mayor, whereas other municipalities have the committee choose one of the committee members to serve as mayor. The role of the mayor varies widely as well -- in some municipalities the mayor is a member of the committee and chairs committee meetings but has little additional power. In other municipalities the mayor is more of an executive officer who does not sit on the committee but may have veto power over its decisions. There are quite a number of different municipal government types in New Jersey! Check out the Wikipedia article on local government in New Jersey for more details (here). Generally municipal committee candidates run under one of the two major parties, or as independent, third party or unaffiliated candidates. Municipal committees are responsible for things like setting property and other local taxes. They have the authority to pass ordinances which function as laws, such as regulations on new construction or picking up after your dog.
Your municipality also has a board of education, or "school board", or may share a school board with one or more nearby municipalities if it is a regional school district.
The next level is county government. In New Jersey, county commissioners are called "freeholders,". They are elected by all voters in Camden County (at large -- we have no county districts, although some counties in the state do elect Freeholders in districts) to serve three-year terms. The term Freeholder is old and has a racist/sexist history (because in the early days only white men could own property and be "free holders") and is likely to be changed in 2020. Freeholders oversee county services like the courts, local roads, healthcare services, voting, etc. The Freeholders in Camden County elect a Director, who chairs meetings but has little additional authority. Unlike municipalities and state governments, the Freeholder boards in New Jersey cannot adopt ordinances that have the force of law for citizens. Their resolutions are about hiring, purchasing, maintaining county parks and roads, and running programs. Counties in New Jersey have a number of varied forms of government like municipalities -- for example, while all have a Board of Chosen freeholders, some have a County Executive as well. Many years ago the LWVCC held a petition drive to change the form of government in this county to include a County Executive who would serve as an elected, accountable leader visible to residents. That petition was unable to collect enough signatures and thus failed.
At the county level we also elect a county Sheriff, a county Clerk, and the county Surrogate.. The county website does a nice job of describing their functions. The Clerk has many roles, including in elections -- read more here. Read about the Sheriff here and the Surrogate here. There is also an appointed Prosecutor and many administrative branches. Check out the list of offices, departments, and agencies here.
The last layer of local government is the state. The NJ state legislature in Trenton has two houses: the Assembly and the Senate. NJ is divided up into state legislative districts and each district's voters elect two assembly representatives and one state senator. And of course we all vote to elect the state's governor. Read more about districts and state and federal representatives on our redistricting page [link].
Local voting districts and party committees?
COUNTY LINKS
Camden County
Atlantic County
Please also visit the League of Women Voters of Atlantic County
Burlington County
Please also visit the League of Women Voters of Burlington County
Gloucester County
The Camden County League unofficially represents Gloucester County.
Camden County
- County website
- "Your Government" overview
- General voting and elections info (declaring a party, military and overseas voting, running for local office, polling places, and more)
- County clerk (candidate lists, vote by mail registration/opt out, election results, other non-voting functions)
- Board of elections (redistricting, collecting and counting vote by mail ballots, conducting election recounts, certification of elections, challengers, and board-worker training)
- Election results and announcements
- Vote by mail information
Atlantic County
Please also visit the League of Women Voters of Atlantic County
- County website
- County clerk
- Board of elections
- Superintendent of elections
- Election results and announcements
Burlington County
Please also visit the League of Women Voters of Burlington County
- County website
- County clerk
- Board of elections
- Superintendent of elections
- Election results and announcements
Gloucester County
The Camden County League unofficially represents Gloucester County.
STATE LINKS
- State website
- NJ Division of Elections
- NJ state legislature (find your representatives, track bills, and more)
- NJ state voter registration system (check if you're registered, view your voting history, and more)
- Voter registration forms (includes forms by county)
FEDERAL LINKS