Susan Evans

Warren County Clerk Patricia Kolb will change her county's ballot, which for the last three general elections has designated all independent and third-party candidates as "Non-Partisan."

The ballot will now list the "Non-Partisan" candidates as "Nominations by Petition."

"We are going to change it only because you brought it up," said Kolb.  "We never came to a decision whether it's right or wrong."

At least one gubernatorial candidate who belongs to a small political party took issue with the original designation.  Kenneth Kaplan, who is running for governor as a Libertarian, felt that that the old ballot treated his party as if it did not exist.

"If we were just using a three word slogan that didn't indicate a party, that would be one thing. If we were just ‘Be Happy Today,' I could see it being non-partisan, but we are the Libertarian Party," said Kaplan.  "To on one hand say non-partisan and the other to have a party label is just absurd."

PolitickerNJ.com contacted the Secretary of State's office to ask whether the "Non-Partisan" designation was correct.  Spokeswoman Susan Evans said that they would reach out to the Attorney General's office for an opinion. 

But Kolb said that she decided to change the ballot's wording after talking to State Division of Elections Director Bob Giles. 

Click here to view the original Warren County ballot.

The New Jersey Democratic State Committee failed to hold a meeting to formally select its electors for Barack Obama, but is still on track to meet the Division of Elections filing deadline of Sept. 12.

State law requires political parties to hold a meeting to nominate electors within seven days of its national convention. The parties then have an additional week to file electors' names with the Division of Elections.

Democratic Committee Executive Director Rob Angelo said the elector certification process, generally completed at the committee meeting, is now underway.