I hope your 2024 is off to a great start! Citizens Union had a successful end to 2023. In late December, Governor Hochul signed a law that will move most county and town elections outside New York City to even-numbered years. This will boost voter turnout and strengthen local democracies.
However, there is still more work to do. We need to move all elections to even-numbered years throughout the state, including in New York City. This can be accomplished by passing a constitutional amendment. We will continue our advocacy on this issue in 2024.
We also achieved another major victory in the final days of 2023 when Governor Hochul vetoed a bill that would have weakened New York State’s public campaign finance program. The bill would have allowed matching $10,000 donations from wealthy individuals with taxpayer dollars instead of matching small donations of up to $250. Our next step is to secure full funding for the program in the state budget.
Stay tuned as Citizens Union continues to work towards implementing more transformational reforms for the city and state in 2024.
Best,
Betsy Gotbaum
Executive Director, Citizens Union/Citizens Union Foundation
POLICY UPDATES
Citizens Union Supports a Legislative Change for Disqualifying Candidates Who Have Engaged in Insurrection from the Ballot in New York
In a statement released this month, Citizens Union urged the legislature to create a viable mechanism for disqualifying candidates who have participated in an insurrection from the ballot under the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution.
This issue has been raised in other states, such as Colorado and Maine, which have disqualified former President Donald Trump from appearing on their state ballots. In New York, the issue would ordinarily be decided by the State Board of Elections, but it’s likely that they will be in a deadlock. Citizens Union supports giving the Attorney General the power to break any such deadlock.
Former public officials who have participated in egregious assaults on our constitutional order should be disqualified from holding office. It is essential to our democracy and the rule of law. You can read our statement here.
Citizens Union and NY Voting and Civil Rights Groups Call for Transparent Redistricting Process
This month, we joined other good government, voting, and civil rights groups at a virtual press conference to demand the New York State Independent Redistricting Commission hold an open and transparent redistricting process.
In December, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled that the state’s Congressional maps must be redrawn. The ruling ordered the state’s independent redistricting commission to submit new maps to the legislature for approval by Feb. 28.
We are urging the Independent Redistricting Commission to conduct public hearings throughout the state, allow the public to submit testimony, and open all deliberations to the public. Holding public mapping sessions is a well-tested practice that has worked well in other jurisdictions, including New York City. The best way to reduce political intervention and backroom deals is to show the public how their district lines are drawn.
You can watch the press conference here.
State Public Campaign Finance Program Bolstered by Substantial Funding
Governor Hochul’s executive budget, released earlier this month, allocated substantial funding for the state’s public campaign finance program. Following calls from Citizens Union and other good government groups, the Governor allocated $100 million towards matching funds for the 2024 elections – exceeding the amount of funding requested by the agency running the program.
Almost 200 candidates have joined the voluntary public campaign finance program so far, and the first public funds could be distributed as early as May. Now, we call on Majority Leader Stewert-Cousins and Speaker Heastie to continue their pro-democracy commitment by cementing this full funding allocation in the final budget ahead of the 2024 election.
You can read more here.
NYC Bar Association Panel: Experts Evaluate the Case for Shifting Municipal Elections to Even-Numbered Years
Earlier this month, Citizens Union and the New York City Bar Association held a panel discussion to debate whether municipal elections in New York City should be moved to even-numbered years.
Brigid Bergin, Senior Reporter at WNYC and Gothamist, moderated the panel, which featured our Director of Public Policy Ben Weinberg, State Senator Robert Jackson, NYC Council Member Sandra Ung, and Marina Pino, Elections and Government Counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice. The panel discussed why moving local elections to even-numbered years would increase voter turnout, lower election costs, and bring a more representative electorate to the polls – while addressing skeptics’ concerns.
You can view the panel here.
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