Document May 31, 2022

The Reformer: May 2022

What district do I live in? Who will be on the ballot? Over the past few weeks, these are questions I’ve been asked all too frequently. It’s nearly June, and even the most civically engaged New Yorkers don’t know who will be on the ballot on primary day.

Last month, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled that the congressional and state senate maps drawn by the State Legislature were unconstitutional. The court found that the Legislature violated the 2014 amendment that created the Independent Redistricting Commission and banned gerrymandering.

Now we have chaos. New Yorkers will vote in two primary elections – something we sought to avoid when New York passed legislation to consolidate federal and state primaries to boost turnout and make voting easier. Candidates are forced to scramble as district lines have changed dramatically. Voters are trying to figure out who is running to represent them.

All because the Legislature overstepped its authority, thus relinquishing its power over redistricting and handing it to the courts. New Yorkers deserve better.

Best,

Betsy Gotbaum

Executive Director, Citizens Union/Citizens Union Foundation

POLICY UPDATES

Citizens Union and League of Women Voters Call for ALL Primaries to be Moved to August

Earlier this month, we teamed up with the League of Women Voters of NYS to send a letter to Governor Hochul and legislative leaders, urging them to postpone all elections scheduled to take place in June to August 23. The court decision to invalidate Congressional and State Senate maps leaves in place primary elections for Statewide offices, State Assembly, judicial offices, and elections for party positions that are scheduled for June.

Having an election in June and another in August would depress voter turnout and place administrative burdens and costs on local boards of elections. Citizens Union advocated for legislation to consolidate primaries for state and federal offices (which the legislature passed in 2019) to avoid these issues.

Unfortunately, we were unsuccessful in this effort. New York will have a primary for statewide offices and Assembly on June 28, and another primary for Congress and State Senate on August 23.

You can view a copy of our letter to the legislative leaders here.

Reforming New York’s Broken Election Administration System

This month, the New York State Senate passed a package of bills that represent an important step in improving New York’s broken election administration system. This legislation would provide voters across the state with better-trained election officials who meet appropriate qualifications and can be adequately reviewed by local authorities before they are appointed. In New York City, the approved changes would be a major reform of the NYC Board of Elections, making the agency more professional, independent, and efficient.

We applaud Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Elections Committee Chair Senator Zellnor Myrie, and the bills’ sponsors for leading the fight to improve election administration. We urge the Assembly to swiftly pass these bills, before another Board of Elections blunder occurs.

These reforms should be followed by further legislation that reduces the dependency of election officials on party bosses. The foremost priority should be to remove the state constitutional requirement that empowers the two major political parties to effectively control election boards.

You can read our memo of support for these bills here.

Update on Council Redistricting Work

Following advocacy from Citizens Union and our partners, the NYC Districting Commission announced that it will hold one citywide public hearing before releasing the first draft of City Council lines. At the May 26 hearing, commissioners heard feedback on the current district configuration and the early stages of their work.

Citizens Union was there to stress our recommendations for an open and fair redistricting process, including developing a code of ethics, and taking active steps to maximize public participation. As we have noted in our research, recent legal and population changes mean substantial shifts for many Council Districts. New Yorkers must be an integral part of the redrawing process.

As the June 7 deadline for the Districting Commission to release its first draft maps approaches, Citizens Union Foundation continues to provide trainings and information sessions to groups across the five boroughs. Last week, we hosted CU members and supporters for an online training. If you were unable to attend, you can watch the recording here.

You can find more more info about our redistricting work at CitizensUnion.org/NYCRedistricting

CIVIC CONVERSATION

CU Presents its First In-Person Civic Conversation

June 10th at 8:30 am, The Century Association, 7 West 43rd Street

On Friday, June 10th at 8:30 am, Citizens Union will host a Civic Conversation Featuring Janno Lieber, Chair and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The program will be moderated by journalist and political commentator John Avlon.

The event will be held at The Century Association, 7 West 43rd Street. To reserve a seat, click here.

This event is free to the public. Please join us.

Janno Lieber
Chairman, MTA

CU IN THE NEWS

New York Daily News
5/31/22
Donors to Mayor Adams’ campaign have sizable investments in Evolv Technologies, a gun detection company favored by City Hall

BronxNet TV
5/30/22
BronxTalk with Gary Axelbank: Redistricting

Albany Times Union
5/28/22
Commentary: Let’s get redistricting right the next time

Spectrum News
5/2/22
New York good-government advocates: Move all primaries to August

City & State
5/4/22
With redistricting chaos, support grows for consolidating all New York primary elections in August

New York Daily News
5/5/22
Ballot bungle: Move all N.Y. state and local primaries to August

Queens Chronicle
5/5/22
Dems go to U.S. court; third map challenged

New York Daily News
5/6/22
Poll position: The Legislature must consolidate the primary votes, Hochul’s opposition aside

GOTHAM GAZETTE

Are you thankful for Gotham Gazette? We are thankful for all of our readers and supporters as we continue to cover New York government and politics like no other publication. Please support our work with a donation today.

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CU FLASHBACK

Citizens Union has provided New Yorkers with a longstanding service since 1910: the Voters Directory. Published before every election, the Directory includes information about every race on the ballot, biographical info on virtually all candidates, and CU’s nonpartisan evaluation of many candidates — something they have kept an eye on. Here is what then-Mayor Ed Koch had to say about CU’s “preferred” designation when he was running for re-election in 1987.

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