Two bills are pending in the New York legislature to decrease the number of signatures needed for petitions. Assembly member Barbara Clark (D-Queens) is the lead author of both bills. A2939 would cut the number of signatures in half for all types of petitions, both those to get candidates on a primary ballot, and those to get a candidate on the general election ballot. For example, the statewide petitions would drop from 15,000 signatures to 7,500. A2939 has six co-sponsors.
Clark has also introduced A3664, which only cuts the number of signatures for a candidate for U.S. House in the general election, from 3,500 signatures, to 2,000.
Another bill would provide privacy for people who sign ballot access petitions. A847 says “No person shall post or publish or permit the posting or publishing of any document obtained under any provision of this chapter that contains copies of original signatures except in connection with a review of such signatures for the purpose of objecting to a petition.” The authors are Audrey Pheffer (D-Far Rockaway) and John McEneny (D-Albany).
On the New York City 2010 General Election Ballot, the Charter Revision Commission put on the ballot as one of the question to voters' "Ballot Access: Generally reduce the number of petition signatures needed by candidates for city elective office to appear on a ballot:
The charter change would reduce from 7,500 to 3,750 the number of signatures required to be collected by candidates for Mayor, Public Advocate, and Comptroller to appear on the primary ballot or the general election ballot. It would also reduce from 4,000 to 2,000 the number of signatures candidates for Borough President would need to collect to appear on either ballot. Lastly, it would reduce to 450 the number of signatures required to be collected by candidates for City Council to appear on either ballot, down from 900 to appear on the primary ballot and 2,700 to appear as an independent candidate in the general election. It passed 731,152 to 144,364.
Also on the ballot was a Term Limit change from three terms to two. It also passed 733,858 to 257,001.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!
Michael H. Drucker
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