I've Got the New York State Voter Registration Blues
By Micah L. Sifry, 12/02/2007 - 1:53pm

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So I go online this morning to download a voter registration form for my daughter who is turning 18 at the end of January, and thus ought to be able to vote in the NY presidential primary on Feb 5.

Check out what the NY State Board of Elections FAQ page says about the next primary election date:

When is the next election?

The next Primary Election is September 18, 2007. The next General Election is November 6, 2007. For more information regarding filing or registration dates or deadlines refer to the Political Calendar. (2007 Political Calendar will be available in the spring of 2007)

Same with trying to figure out the voter registration deadline if you go to the voter registration deadline page:

This is pathetic!! I'm sure Governor Eliot Spitzer has more important things to worry about than making sure we have a functioning democracy, but surely some functionary at the state board of elections ought to respond to this problem, and fast?

In fact, if you want to figure out if someone is eligible to vote in a particular state's primary, and what the deadline is for registering...good luck. I had to download a seven-page pdf titled Presidential Primary - Feb. 5, 2008 - Plans and Calendar - Amended, and then read the fine print on the top of page 7 to learn that completed registration forms had to be postmarked no later than 25 days before the primary and received no later than twenty days prior--in other words, mailed by January 11 and received by January 16. But I'm still not sure if my daughter, who doesn't turn 18 in 2007, is eligible to vote in the 2008 primary. We're just going to mail in the form and see.

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NY state info

http://www.elections.state.ny.us/NYSBOE/law/2007PPBallotAccessCalendar.p...

We have a lot of people working to aggregate this type of information. It's a shame it's so hard to figure out. New York isn't the only state that practically hides primary information.

http://www.primarilypaul.com/ron-paul-in-the-primaries/

By Tex MacRae at Sun, 12/02/2007 - 2:38pm | login or register to post comments

NY State BOE

I have another huge frustration about the NY State BOE that I think might be unique to NY. If you want to change your party affiliation to be eligible to vote in a closed primary it had to be completed by October 12th. They only do party changes once a year in NY. You can change your address or your name at any time and it will become effective immediately (new registrations also become eligible immediately this only affects party changes for voters who are already registered). But if you are registered to vote as an Independent, Green Party or something other than a Democrat (for instance) you will not be able to vote in February's Democratic primary. (This same rule holds true for the Republican primary) The date you had to make the switch seems relatively arbitrary and the information is not published or made public anywhere that I have found. I have encountered a number of voters as I have been working on the Obama campaign who were looking forward to voting for him by making a party switch but since they were unaware that it had to be done so early have now been left out of the process. Seems a bit suspect to me... Some changes may be due at the State BOE and the citizens of the State should demand some accountability by the body that is entrusted with controlling our voting rights.

I support Barack Obama for President. After years working on campaigns and studying candidates I feel we finally have someone here with a shred of integrity and a true understanding of what democracy really means. See for yourself at www.barackobama.com

By OhByeMama at Sun, 12/02/2007 - 5:45pm | login or register to post comments



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