As New York election attorney Joseph T. Burns explains, a new rule that is set to be implemented this weekend gives Democratic Attorney General Letitia James enormous power over the state’s election process.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Burns — a partner at the law firm Holtzman Vogel — elaborated: “Nobody is really talking about it or what a big effect it’s going to have. But it’s interesting because, look, there’s a lot of bad stuff that happens in New York when it comes to the elections and everything else, but this strikes me as being particularly bad. And it’s certainly quite a power grab by the attorney general as well.”
New York’s John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of 2022 made the change possible. One of the most important elements of the law, which becomes effective Sept. 22, mandates that certain covered areas obtain a so-called preclearance from the attorney general or a court before they make any election changes. So this could be changes like modifying early voting hours, or making sure that voter lists are current and up to date — for example removing people who have died, Burns said.
As Burns instigated in a recent op-ed for the New York Post: Essentially, this law gives James “unprecedented power over election processes in some of the most hotly contested congressional districts in the nation, including those on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley.”
By Burns’ account, the rule would upend New York’s decades old bipartisan election administration system that he says has been working fine for residents. As he wrote in his op-ed, “The law would force several counties, cities, towns, villages and school districts to get the AG or a designated court’s permission before making any changes regarding elections or voting.”
Burns went on to list these triggers noting that any political subdivision covered by a court order or other governmental action arising from violations of federal or state voting rights laws in the last 25 years, is a “covered entity.” He mentioned the case of Erie County — which is home to Buffalo – after a court order for discord over redistricting disputes close to 10 years ago.
“Some of this sounds really sinister. Oh, they’re taking away the rights of a minority,” Burns said.
Burns called the law “bad policy” because it breaks up election boards that are by nature bipartisan to prevent favoritism. However, at a time when “people are looking for election integrity, what better than to have both sides with some interest in the outcome?” he said. He cautioned that providing an elected official with political veto power of election boards is a dangerous precedent.
New York law operates the primaries as well as elections themselves through bipartisan boards that are made up of equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats. Although this translated into inefficiency, Burns is convinced a more haphazard system has helped maintain trust among voters. But in his op-ed, he described the preclearance rule as “defy(ing) this constitutionally mandated system of bipartisan election administration.”
Burns also expressed fear that we have just 40 days (the time left for the upcoming presidential election) to sort out the new rule. He also mused on what would happen if a polling place were destroyed in an act of arson or flood. Election commissioners in those towns would have to locate a new polling site and file an application for approval by the AG’s office. Burns recognized that the attorney general’s office could move speedily but said that extra paperwork and clearance might still slow things down.
