6 thoughts on “Policy Options Brief_NY State Low Voter Turnout”
Hi! Low voting turnout is a serious problem, as we have seen in the most recent presidential election, and you did a great job supporting this problem with the statistic presented in your paper. The options you presented are good and I believe would assist with increasing voter turnout. I think a combination of all three – early voting, open primary, and same day registration would be the best option. However, it would be helpful to get more information on some cons, barriers or reasoning against why more states do not change their voting policies. Or what barriers currently exist to prevent the monitoring or tracking of votes if people were allowed to vote earlier or register on the same day.
This is really interesting and I think you lay out the most practical and effective solutions. One problem not mentioned that may be interesting to explore solutions to is the management and control of voter rolls and the physical voting process itself. There is an ongoing investigation into how thousands of people were mistakenly dropped from the Brooklyn voter registration list during the last primary that seems to have revealed some massive flaws in the way both voter data is maintained and also in the way the people physically vote. This led to serious repression of votes and it is entirely possible similar errors often occur that go undiscovered. It seems that this would disproportionately harm voters from less-educated or ESL backgrounds who may not entirely understand the voting process or their options should they be denied the right to vote.
To me, same-day registration would do the most immediate good in opening up the voting process to everyone. New York’s registration rules are incredibly stringent, especially for a liberal state. In all, however, I think all of your policy options are necessary for a truly inclusive system.
Hi. The brief was very informative. The solutions seem well tailored to the problem. You do touch on demographic differences in voting patters. It would be interesting to know more about the differences, and whether low turnout is a problem across demographics, or are there groups that specifically drive down the overall rate, while some groups are active.
Sufficient arguments were made to support reasons for low voter turn-out:
*rigid, complicated voting process which should be simplified
*lack of early voting
*improving the absentee ballot system
*lengthy bureaucratic processing of forms
* closed primaries discouraging those not registered to a particular party
Is low voter turn-out related to issues of administrative or political functions that could be improved or streamlined? Are there deeper issues such as citizen detachment or indifference to the importance of utilizing the power of civic duties? If “since 1984 no more than 39% of eligible voters with less than a high school education have voted in each general election” what historical significance connected to that year may have marked the decline or can the trend be changed if we research that specific demographic. This memo offered a great opportunity to make suggestions on how technology could be used to implement a change in the voting system that could increase voter turn-out. It would be fantastic if instead of going to a designated location citizens could cast their ballot on their cell phone or computer with a unique assigned user identification number.
You’ve made a very strong case for same-day registration, early voting, and open primaries. Low voter turnout is a serious issue that has affected campaigns I have worked on. Another possible option you might want to look into would be state-sanctioned voter registration stations. Many grassroots campaigns exhaust hundreds of hours on walking door-to-door to register voters or create a temporary registration station, but this probably would not ease the troubles involved with getting to a polling station on Election Day, or necessarily increase turnout. The most appealing option you’ve presented is early voting. The statistical evidence you provided showing how early voting increases turnout rates is sufficient and compelling.
I didn’t realize that New York is consistently ranked so low in voter turnout. Your brief laid out the issues as well as baseline statistics pointing to opportunities to be gained by adopting new practices. Your options presented are all logical, but I wonder how a tax cut incentive that is activated only with proof of vote submission would impact the turnout for both the primary and general.
From the options presented, I feel as though offering same day voting registration for primaries as well as an early voting option could dramatically affect the poll statistics.
Hi! Low voting turnout is a serious problem, as we have seen in the most recent presidential election, and you did a great job supporting this problem with the statistic presented in your paper. The options you presented are good and I believe would assist with increasing voter turnout. I think a combination of all three – early voting, open primary, and same day registration would be the best option. However, it would be helpful to get more information on some cons, barriers or reasoning against why more states do not change their voting policies. Or what barriers currently exist to prevent the monitoring or tracking of votes if people were allowed to vote earlier or register on the same day.
This is really interesting and I think you lay out the most practical and effective solutions. One problem not mentioned that may be interesting to explore solutions to is the management and control of voter rolls and the physical voting process itself. There is an ongoing investigation into how thousands of people were mistakenly dropped from the Brooklyn voter registration list during the last primary that seems to have revealed some massive flaws in the way both voter data is maintained and also in the way the people physically vote. This led to serious repression of votes and it is entirely possible similar errors often occur that go undiscovered. It seems that this would disproportionately harm voters from less-educated or ESL backgrounds who may not entirely understand the voting process or their options should they be denied the right to vote.
To me, same-day registration would do the most immediate good in opening up the voting process to everyone. New York’s registration rules are incredibly stringent, especially for a liberal state. In all, however, I think all of your policy options are necessary for a truly inclusive system.
Hi. The brief was very informative. The solutions seem well tailored to the problem. You do touch on demographic differences in voting patters. It would be interesting to know more about the differences, and whether low turnout is a problem across demographics, or are there groups that specifically drive down the overall rate, while some groups are active.
Sufficient arguments were made to support reasons for low voter turn-out:
*rigid, complicated voting process which should be simplified
*lack of early voting
*improving the absentee ballot system
*lengthy bureaucratic processing of forms
* closed primaries discouraging those not registered to a particular party
Is low voter turn-out related to issues of administrative or political functions that could be improved or streamlined? Are there deeper issues such as citizen detachment or indifference to the importance of utilizing the power of civic duties? If “since 1984 no more than 39% of eligible voters with less than a high school education have voted in each general election” what historical significance connected to that year may have marked the decline or can the trend be changed if we research that specific demographic. This memo offered a great opportunity to make suggestions on how technology could be used to implement a change in the voting system that could increase voter turn-out. It would be fantastic if instead of going to a designated location citizens could cast their ballot on their cell phone or computer with a unique assigned user identification number.
You’ve made a very strong case for same-day registration, early voting, and open primaries. Low voter turnout is a serious issue that has affected campaigns I have worked on. Another possible option you might want to look into would be state-sanctioned voter registration stations. Many grassroots campaigns exhaust hundreds of hours on walking door-to-door to register voters or create a temporary registration station, but this probably would not ease the troubles involved with getting to a polling station on Election Day, or necessarily increase turnout. The most appealing option you’ve presented is early voting. The statistical evidence you provided showing how early voting increases turnout rates is sufficient and compelling.
I didn’t realize that New York is consistently ranked so low in voter turnout. Your brief laid out the issues as well as baseline statistics pointing to opportunities to be gained by adopting new practices. Your options presented are all logical, but I wonder how a tax cut incentive that is activated only with proof of vote submission would impact the turnout for both the primary and general.
From the options presented, I feel as though offering same day voting registration for primaries as well as an early voting option could dramatically affect the poll statistics.