Who we are.

On June 2, 2026, Hunterdon County ran a primary election for 106,357 registered voters. When results came in, 21,016 had cast a ballot. The polling locations were open. Election workers showed up. Four in five registered voters did not use what was available to them.

NJYCIN maps that gap at the precinct level. Each chapter collects data from official government sources, produces a research brief, and delivers it to county officials before going public. The goal is specific numbers in front of the clerks and election boards who run the elections the research covers.

The typical student civic project reaches the person grading it and no one else. NJYCIN delivers research to county clerks and election boards who actually run elections. The data comes from official records. Every number is verifiable against the same public sources used to produce it.

How research works.

  1. Topic selection.

    The chapter identifies a local civic participation pattern worth investigating: a turnout gap, a precinct outlier, a structural barrier.

  2. Data collection.

    All figures come from official government sources: state and county Boards of Elections, Census Bureau data, and public records requests where needed.

  3. Draft and peer review.

    The chapter writes a research brief following NJYCIN's fifteen-section standard format. A second chapter reviews it before submission.

  4. Official factual review.

    Before publication, the relevant county clerk or Board of Elections receives a copy with an invitation to flag factual errors. This is a courtesy, not a request for endorsement.

  5. Publication and distribution.

    The brief publishes on the NJYCIN website and goes directly to local officials, civic partners, and local press.