Several New York bills are aimed at strengthening voter protections by addressing issues in election administration and at the polls.
The “Hands Off Our Vote” package is being considered as the Trump administration tries to create a national registry of eligible voters and enforce stricter rules on mail-in ballots.
Along with improvements to election security, Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York, said one bill in the package would prevent superficial voter eligibility challenges.
“This bill would ensure any challenger has to identify themselves and that they have to swear to the basis on which they’re challenging the eligibility of another voter,” Lerner said. “We have seen instances where people have been challenged, and it’s created a lot of confusion.”
The bills have received widespread support, but the late state budget has been the primary challenge to passing them. With the budget only finalized this week, lawmakers have one more week in the legislative session to pass other bills.
As New York and other states try to strengthen voting and election integrity laws, concerns remain about how to handle this year’s midterms.
An NPR-Marist poll found 46% of Americans want the National Guard to monitor polling places, an idea championed by the Trump administration. Lerner said New Yorkers are worried about voter intimidation.
“When people read deliberate misstatements by the president about vote by mail or about who is eligible to vote, people become concerned,” Lerner said. “And of course, we’ve seen various folks claiming there should be some sort of federal enforcement at the polls.”
She added that national and state election laws ban federal law enforcement from monitoring polling places.
Despite support for the bills, local election administration is losing $1 million in funding in New York’s 2027 budget. The issue is not unique to New York: A Brennan Center for Justice survey found 75% of election officials nationwide say they are not receiving new election resources to aid in their work.
Edwin is a reporter and producer in North Tonawanda, New York. He’s previously reported for the Niagara Gazette and the Ithaca Times. Edwin got an early start in radio interning for WBFO-88.7FM, NPR’s Buffalo affiliate. In 2018, he graduated from SUNY Buffalo State College with a B.A. in Journalism, and in 2022, graduated from Syracuse University with an M.S. in Communications.