We urge the Governor and lawmakers to consolidate the presidential primary and other relevant special elections with the June 23rd legislative and congressional primary. Generally we believe that elections should not be postponed, however, the current circumstances require extraordinary measures. Consolidating the primaries is a prudent public health measure that does not undermine our democracy, and frees up much needed funding for more immediate public health needs.

The Syracuse Common Council yesterday took historic action toward creating an independent redistricting commission to draw districts for the City of Syracuse. The Common Council voted 7-1 in favor of a charter amendment that will require future redistricting to be done by an independent redistricting commission that includes members of both parties and safeguards against conflicts of interest from the members of the commission.

Yesterday, in one of the most crowded races in New York City history, Jumaane Williams won his campaign for Public Advocate against 16 other candidates with 33% of the vote. That’s right. A tiny fraction of New Yorkers — only 8.6% of active voters — turned out to elect the second most powerful politician in the city, and the victor didn’ t come close to a majority.

In the midterm election, 38 million Americans in 37 states voted early. None of them were in New York. Instead, eager New Yorkers turned out in record numbers only to wait in long lines, in the rain, sometimes for hours at a time.

Strong sexual harassment legislation requires input from experts, advocates, and those who have experienced sexual harassment themselves. New York State has not held a public hearing on sexual harassment since 1992.

Last Tuesday during the Ohio-12 special election, Americans found themselves angry at third party voters – again – for “wasting” their votes. This problem is not unique to Ohio: in multi-candidate competitive races, we see upset voters of one party or candidate hold others accountable for their loss. The blame should not be placed on voters -- it should be on the broken election system. Just look at New York City. New York City primaries are crowded fields, with sometimes with as many as seven people vying for one ballot line.