TRENTON – Gov. Murphy and State Police Superintendent Col. Patrick Callahan Oct. 19 announced an administrative order that facilitates the safe operation of polling locations at schools for the Nov. 2 General Election.
According to a governor’s office release, the order establishes that from 12 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. Nov. 2, the definition of “the indoor portion of school district premises,” as used in Executive Order No. 251 (2021), which requires mandatory use of face masks by staff, students, and visitors, will temporarily exclude the following:
- Rooms within a school district premises that are used exclusively to conduct the general election
- For those districts that are serving as polling locations and are not simultaneously delivering full in-person instruction, the temporarily-excluded location shall also include any indoor space necessary to gain access to the aforementioned rooms;
- For those districts that are serving as polling locations while simultaneously delivering in-person instruction, temporarily-excluded locations shall be secured by a door or barrier from the rest of the building, such that there is no interaction between individuals accessing the voting equipment and students, school staff, or school administrators of the school district during the school day. To the extent possible, such locations shall be directly accessible from the outside.
For a copy of the Administrative Order, please click here.
