Brick First: Growth Brick Can Handle
Team Brick is not against growth. We are against overdevelopment that outruns our roads, drainage, schools and neighborhood quality of life.
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Polls are open in Brick today, Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tonight, numbers will start showing up on the county's results page within hours. So here's the question worth asking before you refresh that page all evening: when is a result in Ocean County actually final?
The short answer is not tonight. New Jersey law leaves room for mail-in ballots that are still in the mail, for voters to fix problems with their ballot envelopes, and for provisional ballots to be checked. Here's what to do today and the dates that come next, all from the county and state election offices.
Still voting today?
- In person: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at your assigned polling place. Look it up on the state polling place search or the County Clerk's Election Services page. Early voting ended Sunday.
- Mail-in ballot still on your kitchen table? Put it in a secure county drop box or hand it in at the county Board of Elections by 8 p.m. tonight. Brick's drop box is at the Ocean County Library, 301 Chambers Bridge Road, by the entrance, and it's open until 8 p.m. today, per the Ocean County Board of Elections. If you mail it, it has to be postmarked by 8 p.m. today.
- You can't turn in a mail-in ballot at a polling place. If you were sent one and go to the polls anyway, the NJ Division of Elections says you'll vote on a paper provisional ballot.
Not sure what's on the ballot? Our Oct. 24 ballot guide lists every race Brick voters see: U.S. Senate, U.S. House (4th District), one Ocean County commissioner seat, two Brick Board of Education seats and County Question 1 on the Natural Lands Trust rate. There's no Brick council race this year.
Where to watch results tonight
The county Board of Elections links its live 2026 General Election results page, and the County Clerk's page links the same results. Those are unofficial election-night counts. They're a first look, not the final word.
What's still arriving after tonight
The state's 2026 General Election timeline (issued Dec. 31, 2025, and posted by the County Clerk) sets two more mail-ballot deadlines:
- Thursday, Nov. 5: last day for the Board of Elections to receive mail-in ballots delivered by the Postal Service without a postmark (within 48 hours of the polls closing).
- Monday, Nov. 9: last day to receive mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day (within six days of the polls closing).
Every one of those ballots is a valid vote cast on time. They just get counted after election night.
Cure letters and provisional ballots
Sometimes a mail-in ballot arrives with a problem on the certificate envelope, like a missing signature or one that doesn't match the voter's registration record. In that case the Board of Elections sends the voter a cure letter, and the voter returns the signed cure form to confirm their identity. The county posts a sample cure letter showing how it works.
This year the state deadline for the county to receive a cure form is Saturday, Nov. 14. If you get a cure letter, don't set it aside. Follow its instructions and return it right away, because a ballot that isn't cured in time doesn't count.
Provisional ballots, including those from voters who went to the wrong polling place or who had been sent a mail-in ballot, are reviewed before the results are certified. The county prepares its provisional-ballot report on certification day.
When it's official
- Wednesday, Nov. 18: the Ocean County Board of Canvassers meets to certify the results. The meeting is listed on the county Board of Elections page, along with public board meetings on Nov. 6, 10, 13, 15 and 16.
- Saturday, Nov. 21: deadline to apply for a recount (within three days after certification).
- Monday, Nov. 23: deadline for the County Clerk to send official results to the Secretary of State.
- Thursday, Dec. 3: deadline for the state Board of Canvassers to certify.
- Saturday, Dec. 5: deadline to file an election contest petition.
That's why a close race can look different on Wednesday morning than it does on Nov. 18. A lead on election night can grow or shrink as the remaining mail-in, cured and provisional ballots are counted. That's how the state's deadlines are built.
Why this matters for Brick
Team Brick, a local Republican reform movement, believes open government starts with residents knowing how the system works and where to check it themselves. Every date above comes from a public record you can open and read. Our resources page keeps the official election links in one place, and Brick's next council race is in 2027; see our 2027 council page.
So vote today if you haven't, watch the results tonight with some patience, and hold the final word for Nov. 18. Is a well-informed electorate good for the people of Brick? Always.
Sources: Ocean County Board of Elections; Ocean County Clerk Election Services; NJ Division of Elections vote-by-mail page; 2026 General Election Chronological Timeline (all checked Nov. 3, 2026, morning).
