Off-the-line progressive slates in Hudson and Camden County will have favorable positioning on the June primary ballot thanks to random drawings today, giving them a small boost against two of the most powerful party organizations in the state.

In Camden County, county commissioner candidates Kate Delany and Sam Sweet – running on the South Jersey Progressive Democrats line – will get Column A, while their party-backed opponents will be in Column B.

The same is true in Hudson County, where the Progressive Democrats of Hudson County slate includes county executive candidate Eleana Little, two state legislative candidates in the 31st district, and six county commissioner candidates.

Ballot position alone won’t be enough for either slate to win; the Camden and Hudson Democratic Parties both have long histories of turning out voters on their behalf. But it’s an improvement from some prior election cycles, particularly in Camden County, where so-called “phantom candidates” have been known to push insurgent slates into Ballot Siberia.

Middlesex Democrats have also been shunted off into Column B, with two off-the-line commissioner candidates – Lawrence Zee Liu and Frances Bustos-Santiago, running under the “Dems for Justice, Transparency and Fairness” slogan – getting Column A.

In Union County, the Democratic organization came out on top, winning Column A against a rival slate led by former Assemblyman Jamel Holley (D-Roselle). Holley recruited a number of legislative and county-level candidates, but his real mission is to win back the mayor’s office in Roselle.