Following a historic low in Voter Turnout in New York City’s 2017 General Election for Municipal Offices, the New York City Council Committee on Governmental Operations, Chaired by Ben Kallos (D-5th District), Passed Legislation to implement Online Voter Registration. The Legislation is slated for passage by the New York City Council on November 16th. Relying on an opinion by New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman which allows Online Voter Registration by Localities, Council Member Kallos Authored the Legislation, which will Require the New York City’s Campaign Finance Board to Create and Maintain a Secure Website and Mobile App allowing New York City Residents to Register to Vote Online.

Thirty-six States and the District of Columbia offer Limited Forms of Online Voter Registration according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. New York currently only allows Residents with a Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Driver License, Learner Permit, or Non-Driver Identification to Register Online. However many Residents of Color cannot use New York State’s only Online Voter Registration system as Hispanics are twice as likely as Whites to not have Identification (10%) and Blacks are more than two and half times as likely as Whites not to have identification (13%) according to Project Vote.

New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman paved the way for this Legislation to Pass in April of 2016 when he issued and Informal Opinion to Suffolk County Officials advising that “online voter registration, including use of electronically affixed handwritten signatures is legal in New York State.” He said, “The right to vote is the right that protects all other rights. Any law that makes it easier for New Yorkers to vote is a good law; any law that makes it harder to vote is a bad law. Yet New York’s current voting system is an affront to the values of democracy on which this state was built. The bill sponsored by Councilman Kallos marks a key step forward in the fight for more accessible elections, allowing New York City to begin to bring our electoral process into the 21st century. My office will continue to fight to expand voting rights for all New Yorkers.”

“Democracy should be a click away. We are used to filling out forms online with the click of a mouse and voter registration should be no different. You should be registered and receive a confirmation by email, just as with any other website,” said Council Member Kallos, a longtime Voting Rights Activist and Free and Open Source Software Developer. “Barriers to registration must be removed so that anyone who is eligible to register can do so quickly and easily.”

As a proof of concept, Council Member Kallos built a Working Demonstration in a couple of hours using the same Drupal Free and Open Source Software used by the White House with the Webform module available for anyone to test taking a Picture of their Signature with a feature Phone or using their Finger or a Stylus to Digitally Sign at BenKallos.nyc/form/webform-voter-registration.

Among the reasons Residents do not Register to Vote, 27% “intend to register, but haven’t gotten around to it” and 9% responded “it’s not convenient,” according to the Pew Charitable Trusts. Arizona, the Pioneer in Online Voter Registration, now has over 70% of Registrations occurring Online, with 94% of Online Registrants actually Voting, compared with 85% who Registered on the Old Paper system according to the Scholars Strategy Network.

“I am pleased to have had the opportunity to introduce and work with Councilman Kallos on similar legislation nearly ten years ago during his time as my chief of staff when I served in the New York State Assembly,” said former Assembly Member Jonathan L. Bing who authored A.11167 introduced in 2008. “This bill will allow easier access to voter registration for all New Yorkers, especially young people who were raised in the age of electronic communication but did not turn out at the polls in our recent Citywide elections.  Councilman Kallos should be commended for this measure to enhance voter access and all his efforts to improve the ways that government should be working for the people.”

“Councilmember's Kallos' bill will establish the platform to enable voters to register to vote online, which Reinvent Albany believes is currently permissible under state law. The Council's passage of this bill importantly affirms that belief, which is also shared by Attorney General Schneiderman's Office,” said Alex Camarda, Senior Policy Consultant at Reinvent Albany. “It is now incumbent on the City Board of Elections to make known it will accept digitally signed voter registration forms and make voter registration easier for all New Yorkers.”

“Online voter registration for NYC is an idea whose time has come,” said Neal Rosenstein, Government Reform Coordinator for the New York Public Interest Research Group, NYPIRG. “New Yorker across the state with driver’s licenses can already register online through the DMV. It's time for city residents, subway and bus riders to be able to do the same.”

“Improving voter engagement starts with voter access, and New Yorkers expect to be able to sign up online to participate. Offering the convenience of online voter registration to all City residents is a critical first step toward modernizing our voting laws and making our democracy more accessible,” said Jarret Berg, Executive Director of the New York Democratic Lawyers Council.

“For decades, the right has tried to make it as difficult as possible to vote. Under Trump, those efforts have only intensified. We need to make voting as easy as possible for working families and every eligible voter in New York, and online voting registration is a major step in that direction,” said Bill Lipton, New York State Director, Working Families Party.

The Legislation requires the New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB) to provide a Secure Website and Mobile App that allows Residents in New York City who are Qualified to Vote to Register by providing required Information and providing a Signature Electronically. The CFB would Print the Information onto a Voter Registration Form with an Electronically affixed Signature and Transmit the Printed Voter Registration Form to the New York City Board of Elections within 2 Weeks or within 5 Days prior to a Registration deadline. The Online Voter Registration system would provide required Notices, Timeframes, and Deadlines for Registrations as well as how to Confirm Registration. Electronic Signature would be required to be Accepted from a Picture or Scan of a Signature as well as a Touch or Stylus Interface. The CFB would also be able to use Signatures already provided to other City agencies including the NYC ID. An Application Program Interface (API) would also be available for Third Party Developers to create Voter Registration Applications or Integrate Voter Registration into Existing Applications.

I still have problems with this multi-step process. The ultimate Voter Registration process is Automatic Voter Registration, when a qualified Citizen reaches the Legal Age to Vote, they are Registered, then sent a returnable postcard to select their Party or be an Independent, or Opt-Out of Registering.









NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker