File your New Jersey campaign finance reports on time
Every candidate for every office files with ELEC. There is no registration dollar threshold and no county clerk filing.
Last reviewed 29 August 2026 against the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC). Campaign finance rules change: confirm current requirements with New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) before you file. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Your 2026 New Jersey filing calendar
| Report | Period covered | Due |
|---|---|---|
| Primary — 29-day pre-election | Inception – 1 May 2026 | 4 May 2026 |
| Primary — 11-day pre-election | 2 May – 19 May 2026 | 22 May 2026 |
| Primary — 20-day post-election | 20 May – 19 Jun 2026 | 22 Jun 2026 |
| General — 29-day pre-election | 20 Jun – 2 Oct 2026 | 5 Oct 2026 |
| General — 11-day pre-election | 3 Oct – 20 Oct 2026 | 23 Oct 2026 |
| General — 20-day post-election | 21 Oct – 20 Nov 2026 | 23 Nov 2026 |
| Quarterly (between elections) | Each calendar quarter | 15 Apr, 15 Jul, 15 Oct 2026, 15 Jan 2027 |
New Jersey runs separate report sets for each election. Beyond the primary and general above, 2026 also has fire commissioner (21 Feb), April school board (21 Apr), May municipal (12 May), June runoff (9 Jun) and December runoff (1 Dec) schedules, each with its own 29-day, 11-day and 20-day dates — all published in ELEC’s 2026 reporting dates PDF. Runoff filers skip the 20-day post-election report of the preceding election. Personal financial disclosure is due 2 April 2026 for primary candidates and 12 June 2026 for independent general candidates.
Contribution limits
Limits apply per election. These are the 2025–2028 amounts.
| Donor | Limit | Per |
|---|---|---|
| Individual, corporation, union or association → candidate committee | $5,500 | per election |
| Candidate committee, political committee or PAC → candidate committee | $17,300 | per election |
| National political party committee → candidate committee | $17,300 | per election |
| Any source → gubernatorial candidate | $5,800 | per election |
| Cash | $200 maximum | per contributor, per election |
What you must collect on every donor
Itemize above $200 in the aggregate from one source per election. All currency contributions are itemized regardless of amount, and cash is capped at $200 per contributor per election. New Jersey genuinely requires employer as well as occupation.
- Date and amount
- Contributor name and mailing address
- Occupation for individuals
- Employer name and address for individuals
- Generic entries such as “self-employed” are insufficient; “retired”, “student” and “none” are acceptable
Reports that run on a clock, not a date
Form 72/24-HR — replaced the old 48-hour notice
A contribution over $300 in aggregate received from the 13th through the 8th day before the election must be reported within 72 hours. One received from the 7th day through election day must be reported within 24 hours. The same windows apply to expenditures over $300 made to support or defeat another candidate or a public question. Each election’s exact window dates are printed on ELEC’s 2026 reporting dates PDF.
Registering your committee
In New Jersey the form is: Form D-1
Due within ten days of your first contribution or expenditure; personal funds count. Joint committees use D-2.
There is no dollar threshold for registering, and the “$2,600” figure circulating in some guides is not a registration trigger — it is an outdated contribution limit. A candidate committee must exist no later than the date the candidate first receives any contribution or makes any expenditure, and personal funds count as contributions. Form D-1 is due within ten days of that first contribution or expenditure; joint committees use D-2. Candidates who raise and spend nothing skip D-1 and file only form A-1 by the 29-day pre-election date. Candidates spending $6,900 or less file D-1 plus A-1; above $6,900, full R-1 reporting applies.
Who files where
New Jersey files through ELEC eFile. Candidates filing with a county board may use a different system — confirm with your county election office.
Every candidate for every office — state, county, municipal, school board and fire district — files with ELEC electronically. Campaign finance reports are not filed with the County Clerk; clerks handle nominating petitions, which is a different thing entirely. Continuing political committees register with ELEC and file quarterly on form R-3, or annually on A-3 if they expect to spend $8,600 or less in the year.
If you miss a deadline
Civil penalties run up to $11,600 for a first offence and up to $24,000 for each subsequent offence, and every unreported or late transaction can count as a separate offence. Separate schedules cover failure to file sworn statements and late reports. A hearing is available before any penalty becomes final.
Keeping New Jersey records ready to file
Whoever files your reports, the work is the same: capture every contributor field at the point of donation, keep running totals against the itemization threshold, and reconcile before each deadline. Campaign Deputy does that for campaigns in the states it supports.
