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TESTIMONY
Testimony by Robert Carroll, Assembly Member of New York State Assembly, on open ranked-choice primaries
0:06:40
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3 min
Assembly Member Robert Carroll testifies in favor of election reform, highlighting his legislative efforts to make voting easier in New York State. He expresses concern about low voter participation and the exclusion of unaffiliated voters, who constitute over a million voters in New York City, from meaningful participation in closed primaries.
Carroll advocates for an open primary system utilizing ranked-choice voting where the top two candidates advance to the general election, with candidates identified by party registration. He argues this system would build on the familiarity of ranked-choice voting and address the misalignment between the current electoral system and how today's voters feel about political parties.
Robert Carroll
0:06:40
My bill also, the deadline, the twenty five day deadline for voter registration has now been reduced to the constitutional minimum ten days due to my legislation, and my golden day legislation establishes protocols, for registering and voting on, on that day, on the first day of of early voting overlapping with the last day of registration.
0:07:05
Despite these and other reforms, voter participation in New York remains disturbing.
0:07:11
I believe we must take bolder approach to improving the quality of our democracy, and I'm very encouraged by the preliminary report of the commission that identifies open primaries as an area worthy of serious consideration.
0:07:26
Increasingly, voters, especially young people, are not registering with any party.
0:07:31
Unaffiliated voters now make up 22% of registered voters in New York City with a statewide figure closer to 26%.
0:07:39
In the city alone, this constitutes over a million voters, almost double the amount of registered Republicans.
0:07:45
As the Charter Commission report notes, New York's closed primary system effectively shuts out these unaffiliated voters from a meaningful role in our elections since so many elections are decided in the primaries.
0:08:00
If we accept that fairness and a healthy democracy require that these voters not be excluded, the question then becomes what changes would be best.
0:08:09
The commission report mentions various models, citing examples from other states such as California and Alaska, which both have open primaries.
0:08:17
But I believe there is a better model for New York, which the commission report also mentions and is set forth in a bill I authored and introduced in 02/2022 known as a 90.
0:08:28
Under this legislation, all elections in New York state, excluding presidential elections, would be held with an open primary, utilizing ranked choice voting where the top two candidates would then move to the general elections.
0:08:41
Candidates would be identified on the ballot by their party registration.
0:08:45
This system fixes the problem of excluded unaffiliated voters from meaningful participation while building off the current ranked choice primary that New York City voters are already familiar with.
0:08:58
The general election would remain a head to head showdown, but between candidates that have already demonstrated broad support leading to a much more meaningful and dynamic contest.
0:09:08
I wanna be clear.
0:09:09
My family has been active in local Democratic party politics for over fifty years, and I am a Democrat through and through.
0:09:16
But we must be honest that our current electoral system is misaligned with how today's voters feel about our contemporary political parties.
0:09:24
I urge you to move forward with developing a proposal to put before voters for an open ranked choice primary that identifies candidates by party registration and where the top two candidates move on to a general election.
0:09:38
Thank you so much for your time, and have a wonderful night.
Sharon Greenberger
0:09:42
Thank you so much.
0:09:44
I will will ask my fellow commissioners if they have any questions for the assembly member.
0:09:51
Thank you.
0:09:51
We appreciate you taking the time.
Robert Carroll
0:09:53
Thank you.