Election 2020: NJ11s Sherrill/Becchi Contest Voter Guide – Mendham, NJ Patch

NORTH JERSEY – U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Republican challenger Rosemary Becchi are in the home stretch of their race for NJ 11 and Patch has put together a voting guide to help highlight the similarities and difference between the two women when it comes to the pandemic, policy, police, partisan politics and preexisting conditions.

So here is our cheat sheet:

Pandemic Problems

Becchi: The tax attorney said she doesn’t want to keep families on lockdown, noting that she wants to find ways to open up safely.
Sherrill: The former federal prosecutor and Navy helicopter pilot said a move back to normalcy can’t happen until the global health crisis is under control.
Common Ground: Both candidates agreed that following the health guidelines from the Center for Disease Control was important.

Partisan Pot Shots

Becchi: Multiple times throughout the campaign Becchi invoked the name of Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. She said, like Pelosi, Sherrill wants to take away guns from citizens and defund the police.
Sherrill: Sherrill said that the pandemic not being under control is due to a failure of President Donald Trump. She also said his chaotic foreign policy has damaged our relationship with allies.
Common Ground: Congress needs more female voices.

Reproductive Rights

Becchi: The challenger confirmed she was pro-life.
Sherrill: The incumbent said she was pro-choice and believes Planned Parenthood needs to be fully funded.
Common Ground: None.

Police Position

Becchi: The challenger said that her opponent seeks to defund the police and end qualified immunity for police officers.
Sherrill: The Representative said she does not support defunding the police, but that ending qualified immunity would help identify and hold problem officers accountable.
Common Ground: Both agree there are “bad apples” that need to be addressed.

Record Roundup

Becchi: According to Becchi, Sherrill exhibits a very partisan approach and went back on her campaign promise to walk a moderate path. Becchi has repeatedly tried to tie Sherrill to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi across social media through voting record.
Sherrill: The Congresswoman noted that her opponent lobbied in favor the 2017 tax bill that capped the State and Local Property Tax (SALT) deduction at $10,000 which hurt New Jersey families and also helped Exxon Mobile work around environmental regulations. Sherrill also tied Becchi to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who Sherrill said Becchi has donated campaign money to.
Common Ground: None.

Affordable Care Act

Sherrill has said that Becchi has no plan for healthcare if President Donald Trump successfully “sabotages” the ACA, or Obamacare.
Becchi has said that Sherrill wants a government-run system that will destroy the healthcare system provided by employers.
Common Ground: Both claim to support preserving coverage for preexisting conditions.

New Jersey’s 11th District had been a Republican stronghold for many years before Sherrill’s victory in 2018, with Rodney Frelinghuysen, the former chair of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, occupying the seat for decades.

The district includes the following municipalities:

Morris County – Boonton Town, Boonton Township, Butler, Chatham Borough, Chatham Township, Denville, East Hanover, Florham Park, Hanover, Harding, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Lincoln Park, Madison, Mendham Borough, Mendham Township, Montville, Morris Plains, Morris Township, Morristown Town, Mountain Lakes, Parsippany-Troy Hills, Pequannock, Randolph, Riverdale, Rockaway Borough, Rockaway Township and Victory Gardens
Essex County – Bloomfield (split with 10th), Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Montclair (split with 10th), North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell, West Orange (split with 10th)
Passaic County – Bloomingdale, Little Falls, North Haledon, Pompton Lakes, Totowa, Wanaque, Wayne and Woodland Park
Sussex County – Byram, Hopatcong, Ogdensburg, Sparta and Stanhope

Election Rundown

What and who are on the ballot?

Presidential race: Residents can either cast a write-in vote or choose, among the major parties, between Republican President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, or Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden and US Sen. Kamala Harris. Also running are: Don Blankenship/William Mohr (Constitution Party); Howie Hawkins/Angela Nicole Walker (Green); Jo Jorgensen/Spike Cohen (Libertarian); Gloria La Riva/Sunil Freeman (Party for Socialism and Liberation); Roque De La Fuente/Darcy Richardson (The Alliance Party) and Bill Hammons/Eric Bodenstab (Unity Party).
US Congress: One US Senate seat will be contested: Incumbent Democrat Cory Booker will face Republican Rik Mehta. All 12 of the state’s congressional seats will be decided. New Jersey’s delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives is split between 10 Democrats and two Republicans heading into Election Day. See congressional races on your local ballot here.
Marijuana legalization/Ballot questions: Voters will decide whether to legalize the possession and use of marijuana. Voters will also decide whether to makes peacetime veterans eligible to receive the veterans’ property tax deduction.

I received my ballot. Now what?

As part of the primarily vote-by-mail mandate issued by Gov. Phil Murphy and codified by the legislature for the upcoming Nov. 3 election, all ballots to “active voters” were sent by the Garden State’s county clerks by the Monday, Oct. 5 deadline.
So now what?

For those who have already received their ballots, it is simply a matter of filling them out and returning them.

There are a variety of ways to return them:

In-person at a polling location on election day
Mailing them back through the Unites State Postal Service
Dropping them in a secure drop dox located in many municipalities.

Voter Rights

If you are heading in-person to a polling place, it’s important to know your rights, and what is and is not legal in your encounters with poll workers.

Only voters who have never voted at that precinct before are required to show identification, according to New Jersey law. That identification does not have to be photo identification, but it must contain your name and address.

It bears repeating: it is illegal for poll workers to require you to present photo ID, the law states.
For those who may have limited English language proficiency, the law stipulates that you may bring another individual with you into the voting booth to help out casting your vote.

Finally, aside from wearing a mask and staying six feet away from other voters, you can also minimize risk by voting early to avoid long lines to vote.

Since the change to this year’s election was announced by Murphy, there have been many questions about how the process will work. Below is some further reading on the Nov. 3 election process:

A primarily vote-by-mail election means a lot of changes to election day. See what you can expect this November.

Those not needing an ADA compliant booth will need a provisional ballot to vote in-person. Here is what that will look like.

There was language on the primary ballots asked voters certify they requested the ballot, even if they didn’t.

Voters wondering how their signatures are checked before the upcoming election can see the process for themselves.

Need to register for the upcoming election? Want to track your vote once you do? Read on to learn how.

Here is a recap of important dates to remember with upcoming election, all in one place.

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