December 11, 2023
The Honorable Kathy Hochul
Governor of New York State
New York State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224
VIA EMAIL
Re: Support for the Election Alignment Bill (A4282B/S3505B)
Dear Governor Hochul:
The undersigned organizations encourage you to sign Assembly Bill A4282B/Senate Bill S3505B (the “Election Alignment Bill”), which would move the timing of many local elections across the state to even-numbered years, on the same cycle as federal and state elections. As explained below, New York State’s current practice of holding local elections “off-cycle” in odd years is both racially discriminatory and discriminatory against young voters. Off-cycle elections exacerbate racial and age disparities in political participation and lead to under-representation of voters of color and young voters in local governments across the state. The Election Alignment Bill provides a critical opportunity to shift many of the off- cycle elections that produce these discriminatory effects to even years, yielding more representative turnout.
I. Background
Pursuant to existing New York law, towns and counties hold primary elections in June of odd-numbered years and general elections in November of odd-numbered years, which is “off-cycle” from federal and state elections held in even-numbered years. The Election Alignment Bill would shift these local contests to even-numbered years so they are “on-cycle” with federal and state elections. This measure would reduce burdens on voters, facilitate more accessible public education surrounding elections, and increase participation in elections for these critical local offices.
II. Off-Cycle Elections Can Exacerbate Racial Discrimination in Voting
a. Off-cycle elections have been shown to contribute to significant racial and age- based disparities in political participation
Studies have consistently shown that off-cycle elections significantly depress voter turnout, and in doing so disproportionately suppress participation in the democratic process by young people and people of color. Off-cycle elections increase the cost of participation—including arranging time off work, learning where and when to vote, and traveling to the polls—which, as research has shown, often makes voting burdensome for voters who historically face barriers to the ballot box, including young, low-income, and racial and ethnic minority voters. Aligning local elections with state and national elections “greatly reduces [that] cost of participation” for these voters to engage in local democracy, without reducing other voters’ opportunities to participate. In moving to hold these elections alongside national contests, the Election Alignment Bill takes a meaningful step—heralded by some scholars as “the single most important change”—to both increase voter turnout and ensure that the electorate is truly representative of the communities that officials of this state serve.
The impact of off-cycle elections is starkly demonstrated in the disparity between younger and older voter turnout. In fact, one study examining election timing and voter turnout for school districts noted that one of the “most substantial difference[s]” in voter share between on-cycle and off-cycle elections was based on voters’ age. While younger Americans are vastly underrepresented in off-cycle contests (with older voters sometimes representing “more than 2 times as many voters as they do . . . residents”), younger Americans are “substantially better represented in on-cycle contests” to create a more representative voting population.
b. Off-cycle elections result in severe racial disparities in participation in many counties and towns across New York
A preliminary study of voter turnout by age and race/ethnicity performed by the Harvard Election Law Clinic demonstrates the starkly suppressive effects of off-cycle elections.
Relying on voter files from 2014-2022 for the 16 New York counties with the largest non-white populations (excluding those in New York City, which would not be affected by the Election Alignment Bill), the study found that off-cycle elections disproportionately depress minority and youth turnout.
Figure 1 shows that the average reduction in turnout for white voters from on-cycle to off-cycle elections is 42.3%, while the corresponding reductions in turnout for Black, Latino, and Asian voters are 51%, 57.8%, and 58.6% respectively. Similarly, Figure 2 shows that the average reduction in turnout from on-cycle to off-cycle elections for voters over the age of 65 is 30.6%, while the corresponding reduction in turnout for voters aged 18-35 is more than twice as high, at 65.3%.
Figure 1: Reduction in Voter Turnout From On- to Off-cycle Elections by Race/Ethnicity in the Sixteen Studied Counties
Figure 2: Reduction in Voter Turnout from On- to Off-cycle Elections by Age of Voter in the Sixteen Studied Counties
Because of the disparate burdens off-cycle election impose on young voters and voters of color, turnout among these groups, expressed as a proportion of white turnout, is significantly lower in off-year elections, as shown in Figures 3 and 4. This means that off- cycle electorates are disproportionately whiter and older than on-cycle electorates.
Figure 3: Average Ratio of Minority Voters to White Voters in Elections, 2014-2022, in the Sixteen Studied Counties
Figure 4: Average Ratio of 18-35 Year Old Voters to Over 65 Year Old Voters in Elections, 2014-2022, in the Sixteen Studied Counties
In addition to these detrimental effects on voters of color and young voters, ultimately, all voters lose when town and county elections are held off-cycle. Figures 5 and 6 show that turnout among all voters—including white voters—drops off meaningfully in off-cycle elections, as compared to on-cycle elections.
Figure 5: Average Voter Turnout by Race/Ethnicity, 2014-2022, for the Sixteen Studied Counties.
Figure 6: Average Voter Turnout in On- and Off-Cycle Elections by Race/Ethnicity, 2014-2022, for the Sixteen Studied Counties.
III. The Election Alignment Bill Will Promote Compliance with Federal and State Law
The Election Alignment Bill will prevent potential violations of federal and state voting rights laws by New York State and its towns and cities. It is unlawful for states and local governments to maintain racially discriminatory off-cycle elections. The federal Voting Rights Act prohibits practices—including off-cycle elections—that “result[] in a denial or abridgement of the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race, color, [or language-minority status].” A violation of the statute exists when “it is shown that the political processes leading to nomination or election in the State or political subdivision are not equally open to participation by members of [protected classes] in that [their] members have less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.” Similarly, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of New York (the “NYVRA”) prohibits practices—including off cycle elections—whenever it is shown that “based on the totality of the circumstances, members of a protected class have less opportunity than the rest of the electorate to elect candidates of their choice or influence the outcome of elections.” By shifting most “off-cycle” town and county elections “on-cycle” to even years through the Election Alignment Bill, New York will facilitate compliance with federal and state law.
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For the above reasons, we strongly encourage you to sign the Election Alignment Bill. Please feel free to contact Michael Pernick (mpernick@naacpldf.org), Steven Lance (slance@naacpldf.org), Ruth Greenwood (rgreenwood@law.harvard.edu), or Perry Grossman (pgrossman@nyclu.org) with any questions or to discuss these issues in more detail.
Sincerely,
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law
Center for Law and Social Justice At Medgar Evers College (CLSJ) Election Law Clinic at Harvard Law School
Generation Vote LatinoJustice PRLDEF
Long Island Center for Independent Living, Inc.
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU)
Reinvent Albany