Voter education is one hurdle. But a bigger one, advocates say, is the cumbersome voting process itself for people behind bars. “There are impediments and obstacles that create real and serious concerns about the viability of an absentee ballot,” said Cesar Ruiz, associate counsel at LatinoJustice.
In Tuesday’s general election, there are 35 City Council races with more than one candidate on the ballot, as well as contests for Queens District Attorney, Civil Court, Surrogate and Supreme Court judges, and two proposals that would amend the state constitution in relation to debt limits.
“We must encourage our communities to vote, knowing politicians can make life-altering decisions that impact issues important for all Americans, specifically in our work for racial equity.”
A federal court approved the terms of a settlement agreement that requires the NYS Board of Elections create a statewide remote mail-in system so that voters who are blind, or have other print disabilities, can read and mark their ballots independently.
“Disparities that we normally see in campaign fundraising were not apparent this time around in New York City,” said an analyst at the Brennan Center, which compared self-identified gender and race information for each candidate in a competitive June primary with their campaign finance records.
Between June 2020 and the end of June 2021, DOC officials submitted nearly 1,800 voter registrations, ballot requests, and ballots to the city Board of Elections on behalf of those detained in the jails. This includes more than 900 completed voter registration forms.
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