Several top gubernatorial candidates and Jewish leaders in New Jersey are calling on the state to reschedule next year’s June 3 primary election — which overlaps with the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, making it impossible for observant Jews to vote on that date.

In observance of the holiday, Jews are forbidden from working, driving, writing, traveling and using electronics, a range of prominent Jewish leaders in the state note in an open letter shared exclusively with Jewish Insider on Thursday, expressing their “deep concern” regarding the scheduling conflict.

“While mail-in and early voting options are available, primary election day remains the most common time for casting ballots,” the signatories write in their letter addressed to top state elected officials including Gov. Phil Murphy, a term-limited Democrat. “The overlap of these dates means that, without intervention, a significant portion of our community will be disenfranchised.”

The letter, signed by more than 60 rabbis and nonprofit leaders spanning the denominational spectrum, urges the state to introduce and pass a bill in advance of the primary granting lawmakers “the flexibility to move election dates when they conflict with significant religious observances,” arguing that such action would “also establish a sound policy for the future.”

“Ensuring that every citizen can vote without hindrance is essential for maintaining the integrity and inclusiveness of our electoral system,” the letter concludes.

In a statement to JI, Kiran Sheth, a spokesperson for Murphy, said the governor “is open to working with the legislature to shift the date of the June 3, 2025 primary election due to overlap with the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, recognizing that many Orthodox Jewish voters are not able to work, travel, write or use electronics that day.”

“The governor is committed to ensuring that our democratic process remains inclusive and accessible to all New Jersey voters,” Sheth said.

Multiple leading gubernatorial candidates from both parties voiced support for moving the election date to fall outside of Shavuot, a major Jewish holiday celebrating the Ten Commandments.

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), a Jewish Democrat who launched his campaign last month, called the proposed change “a no-brainer” in a statement to JI. “I’m not sure why anyone would oppose it,” he said.

Steven Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City and a Jewish Democrat who entered the primary last April, also said that he would support rescheduling the election to accommodate observant Jews — who make up a sizable portion of the state’s Jewish population.

“My feeling is that the state should always be doing everything possible to facilitate more involvement in an election,” Fulop said in a text message to JI, “and in the case that the election falls on a major holiday for any group that would prohibit large voter participation, then the state should explore moving the election to a day that doesn’t restrict anyone.”

Even as Fulop acknowledged that early voting and mail ballots can be helpful in such situations, “I still think that we want maximum voter turnout — and we should explore having the election on a date that would not restrict anyone,” he confirmed.

Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), who announced her campaign last month, also supports moving the primary date and has reached out to members of the state legislature to discuss the issue, according to a spokesperson.

In a statement to JI, meanwhile, Jack Ciattarelli, a leading Republican candidate for governor who came close to unseating Murphy last election cycle, said “everything possible should be done to ensure that” voting is “easy and convenient,” stressing that the governor and secretary of state “need to take action” addressing the matter. 

Cautioning that “an election taking place on a Jewish holiday can significantly disenfranchise a great many Jews,” he said he is “fully supportive of moving” next year’s primary date to June 4 in order “to ensure that New Jersey’s Jewish community can participate to the fullest extent possible.”

“In a true democracy, nothing is as important as the right to vote,” Ciattarelli told JI.

The conflict isn’t unique to New Jersey, which boasts one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the country and is home to a booming population of Orthodox Jews in Lakewood and other communities. 

Last year, Jewish activists in a handful of states with large Jewish populations — including Maryland and Pennsylvania — also raised concerns that their 2024 presidential primary dates conflicted with Passover, another major Jewish holiday that precludes voting for observant Jews.

While Pennsylvania ultimately went forward with its originally scheduled date, Maryland, for its part, passed a law last year allowing the state to move the election to a later time, avoiding a conflict with Passover.