Editorial: Governor must take lead in changing anti-democracy rules

[WNYresident]

Editorial: Governor must take lead in changing anti-democracy rules

New York has a problem with democracy. It begins with burdensome voting policies and ends with voter apathy. The consequence is disengagement. Fixing those problems lands squarely in the lap of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who recently won a third term as the state’s chief executive.

Here’s a measure of how bad it is. In last month’s midterm election, when voters across the country were energized, New York had its highest Election Day turnout in 24 years. It was still only 49 percent.

Think about that: It was a historic event, yet just under half of voters bothered to show up. Some of that is apathy, of course, and possibly ignorance. Some people will never do their civic duty and still complain about government.

https://buffalonews.com/2018/12/15/e...QyL6dgdMpfZTJM

[WNYresident]

• Early voting: Thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia allow voters to cast ballots before Election Day. The amount of time varies among them, but they have concluded that they can encourage greater participation by making voting easier.

New York, which likes to think of itself as progressive, has stubbornly refused to offer this benefit to its citizens. It should do so promptly.

I would only have voting on election day except for true absentee ballots. If you are literally out of the area you can send in an absentee ballot.

Issue with early voting is it opens the door to cheating. Plus if you find out that the candidate is a pedophile or dumber than a box of rocks the day before election day your vote is already cast.

[WNYresident]

Similarly, New York’s rules make registering to vote more difficult than necessary. Forty-nine states require voters to be registered before they can cast ballots. In North Dakota, however, voters merely have to show up with the required identification.

It's easy to register to vote. There is no need to have have same day registeration/voting. Once again that can lead to underhandedness.

OR do we push for this and use it to our advantage?

We can offer free dinner to those who fill out a voter registration form and vote for the candidate of our choice. Some people may call it bribes for votes but who cares. Right?

[WNYresident]

 New York should also combine election days, instead of sprinkling them around the year. In a presidential election year, for example, voters could be faced with three primary election dates — the presidential primary in April, other federal primaries in June, and the state primary in September — before ever getting to the general election in November. And one more: school board elections fall in May.

I'm ok with this. School/regular elections on one day.