City of Hudson's weighed voting system under scrutiny

[Kevinstat]

Is everything on pace for elections in November for two alderman and one supervisor in each of the redrawn wards?  Or has the Council tried to change anything or has the Columbia County Board of Elections put up any resistance?

The County Board of Elections has apparently updated their database (the state board has new registration figures which show that this has been done). I don't know whether they looked into the inconsistent addresses at Hudson Terrace, where the street address was inconsistent with the apartment unit.

They kept the polling places the same so that many voters will have new voting locations. They really should have switched the new Ward 3 to the fire station, most of the residents were formerly in Ward 5 and it is much closer than the school.

Torie's mentor, Rick Scalera, is running for re-election as supervisor in the truncated 5th Ward.

I can't find any evidence that the Board of Supervisors has addressed the issue of the weighted votes for that body. There was a presentation from the Planning Department of the county about the 2020 Census, which suggests that there is someone there who would know about updating street addresses.

A potential mayoral candidate was arrested for inappropriate touching while collecting signatures.

Torie is collecting signatures to become the Democratic nominee for President of the Common Council. New York has a really byzantine law for nominations.

Rick Scalara was Torie's mentor?  From what I've heard the Fair & Equal initiative had, as one if it's unofficial motivations, limiting Scalara's power (he apparently still has a lot of influence on the Common Council).  Then again, I know Torie doesn't care for Friedman even though they worked together on the Fair & Equal plan.  And he apparently has some pull with Doc Donohue on some issues.  So the alignment on the weighted vote issue could have been atypical.

[jimrtex]

Is everything on pace for elections in November for two alderman and one supervisor in each of the redrawn wards?  Or has the Council tried to change anything or has the Columbia County Board of Elections put up any resistance?

The County Board of Elections has apparently updated their database (the state board has new registration figures which show that this has been done). I don't know whether they looked into the inconsistent addresses at Hudson Terrace, where the street address was inconsistent with the apartment unit.

They kept the polling places the same so that many voters will have new voting locations. They really should have switched the new Ward 3 to the fire station, most of the residents were formerly in Ward 5 and it is much closer than the school.

Torie's mentor, Rick Scalera, is running for re-election as supervisor in the truncated 5th Ward.

I can't find any evidence that the Board of Supervisors has addressed the issue of the weighted votes for that body. There was a presentation from the Planning Department of the county about the 2020 Census, which suggests that there is someone there who would know about updating street addresses.

A potential mayoral candidate was arrested for inappropriate touching while collecting signatures.

Torie is collecting signatures to become the Democratic nominee for President of the Common Council. New York has a really byzantine law for nominations.

Rick Scalara was Torie's mentor?

Rick attended the school at the end of Torie's block, and at recess would go to the playground at the bottom of the hill on 3rd Street.

[jimrtex]

Torie claimed in a radio interview that it was impossible to unify Hudson Terrace. That is not true.

[Kevinstat]

Torie claimed in a radio interview that it was impossible to unify Hudson Terrace. That is not true.

I just listened to that part of the interview.  In the context I don't think he was making a claim that unifying Hudson Terrace was impossible, although he did use that word.  His interviewer apparently lives in Ward 2, perhaps in the area bounded by 1st Street, Columbia Street, 3rd Street and Warren Street that your March 27 plan would have placed in either the 1st Ward (between 1st and 2nd streets) or the 4th Ward ((south)east of 2nd Street).  He mentioned that that guy might have been moved to the 4th Ward.  He said that the 2nd ward needed to lose population, not gain it, which was true (given that the aim was to have equally populated districts so you could get rid of weighted voting), and how "[when] there's an action, there's a reaction."  In a scale of whoppers told by politicians, Torie's comments barely register in my book.

[jimrtex]

Torie claimed in a radio interview that it was impossible to unify Hudson Terrace. That is not true.

I just listened to that part of the interview.  In the context I don't think he was making a claim that unifying Hudson Terrace was impossible, although he did use that word.  His interviewer apparently lives in Ward 2, perhaps in the area bounded by 1st Street, Columbia Street, 3rd Street and Warren Street that your March 27 plan would have placed in either the 1st Ward (between 1st and 2nd streets) or the 4th Ward ((south)east of 2nd Street).  He mentioned that that guy might have been moved to the 4th Ward.  He said that the 2nd ward needed to lose population, not gain it, which was true (given that the aim was to have equally populated districts so you could get rid of weighted voting), and how "[when] there's an action, there's a reaction."  In a scale of whoppers told by politicians, Torie's comments barely register in my book.

I happen to have a copy of the voter rolls for Hudson, so I know where people live(d). I checked where the interviewer lived.

Torie claimed to be accommodating an alderman, which is why all my alternatives took the blocks bounded by Warren-First-Columbia-Third rather than Warren-Second-State-Third.

[jimrtex]

One may recall that it was a study of Hudson governance by a group of Hosftra law students that piqued Torie's interest in weighted voting. The Hofstra students were part of a seminar taught by Professor Ashira Pelman Ostrow. Now Ostrow has penned an article in the Florida Law Review.

ONE PERSON, ONE WEIGHTED VOTE (PDF)

[Kevinstat]

The alleged inappropriate toucher had his petitions invalidated, leaving Rick Rector as the Democratic nominee for Mayor (I don't know if there's in Hudson when only one candidate would be on the ballot).  Also invalidated were the petitions of incumbent Third Ward Alderman Henry Haddad (!) for the same position in the new First Ward (there are still three candidates for the nomination for two seats there) and of Willette Jones for Second Ward Supervisor.  Jones will still be on the ballot in November as the candidate of the Working Families Party, but the Democratic nominee for that seat in a very Democratic ward will be... Abdus Miah!  I wonder how Supervisors from the sticks will relate to him and his relatively broken English.  There was probably an earlier Gossips article detailing who turned in petitions.

[Kevinstat]

I just saw this earlier Gossips list of candidates, and a narrative follow-up.  So it seems like Rick Rector will be unopposed for Mayor of Hudson, unless the deadline for non-party candidates was later and someone else filed or still has time to file.  The level of cross-party nomination in Hudson is interesting.

[Torie]

One may recall that it was a study of Hudson governance by a group of Hosftra law students that piqued Torie's interest in weighted voting. The Hofstra students were part of a seminar taught by Professor Ashira Pelman Ostrow. Now Ostrow has penned an article in the Florida Law Review.

ONE PERSON, ONE WEIGHTED VOTE (PDF)

The article gives short shrift to the seminal problem with weighted voting, which is inequality in voting power. But yes, as the article briefly notes, if both proportionality in voting strength to population and voting power can be met within the 10% constraint, then yes, at least for districts that have multiple sub jurisdictions, which the districts track, I agree that weighted voting is legal. Hudson does not meet either test. It has no sub jurisdictions, and unless one assumes that the two alderpersons from each ward elected at the same time, vote randomly vis a vis each other, it does not meet the equality in voting power test either. Failing to meet the first test causes a loss of the major policy reason for weighted voting. Failing to meet the second test is almost certainly fatal. Inequality in voting power, means inequality in representation, when it comes to the power to influence legislative outcomes.

[Kevinstat]

Torie, a few (well, several) questions.

Can/how/when by can Independent (non-party) candidates get on the ballot?  Has that deadline passed?

Are primaries not held when there or no more candidates for a nomination than seats to be nominated?  It sounds like that from some entries I've read on The Gossips of Rivertown.

Are write-in votes allowed in primaries?  That would arguably be inconsistent with only holding primaries if there is a contest, unless there's a period for write-in candidates to declare before a primary is cancelled.

Is the list of candidates for municipal/county offices in Hudson who can possibly be on the November ballot pending the primary (barring a write-in candidate beating someone who is on the ballot) limited to those candidates listed here, minus the three candidates whose petitions were invalidated, but plus potentially one candidate apiece in the two races where the Independence Party filed an Opportunity to Ballot petition?

Will you be seeking the Independence Party nod, either as a backup if you lose the Democratic primary (your opponent Tom Depietro already has a backup on the Republican and Working Families lines), to potentially get more votes in November or to prevent a third candidate getting on the November ballot?  Do you know if DePietro or anyone else is seeking the Independence Party nomination?

Has the Hudson Democratic Party made any endorsements since those they announced on May 11?  Will they go ahead and endorse Abdus Miah now that he's the only candidate for the Democratic nomination?

Was it a surprise that Henry Haddad's petitions were found insufficient?  Does his being bounced help or hurt Michael O'Hara, a fellow incumbent but on the opposite side of the old ward boundary?  What side of 3rd Street do Rob Bujan and Kamal Johnson live on?

Was there any discussion of moving the 3rd Ward polling place to the Fire Station?  I agree with Jimrtex that that would seem to make sense.

[jimrtex]

Torie, a few (well, several) questions.

Can/how/when by can Independent (non-party) candidates get on the ballot?  Has that deadline passed?

Are primaries not held when there or no more candidates for a nomination than seats to be nominated?  It sounds like that from some entries I've read on The Gossips of Rivertown.

Are write-in votes allowed in primaries?  That would arguably be inconsistent with only holding primaries if there is a contest, unless there's a period for write-in candidates to declare before a primary is cancelled.

Is the list of candidates for municipal/county offices in Hudson who can possibly be on the November ballot pending the primary (barring a write-in candidate beating someone who is on the ballot) limited to those candidates listed here, minus the three candidates whose petitions were invalidated, but plus potentially one candidate apiece in the two races where the Independence Party filed an Opportunity to Ballot petition?

Will you be seeking the Independence Party nod, either as a backup if you lose the Democratic primary (your opponent Tom Depietro already has a backup on the Republican and Working Families lines), to potentially get more votes in November or to prevent a third candidate getting on the November ballot?  Do you know if DePietro or anyone else is seeking the Independence Party nomination?

Has the Hudson Democratic Party made any endorsements since those they announced on May 11?  Will they go ahead and endorse Abdus Miah now that he's the only candidate for the Democratic nomination?

Was it a surprise that Henry Haddad's petitions were found insufficient?  Does his being bounced help or hurt Michael O'Hara, a fellow incumbent but on the opposite side of the old ward boundary?  What side of 3rd Street do Rob Bujan and Kamal Johnson live on?

Was there any discussion of moving the 3rd Ward polling place to the Fire Station?  I agree with Jimrtex that that would seem to make sense.

The filing deadline for independent candidates is August 22. The petition requirement is remarkably low, 5% of vote for Governor in 2014. Party candidates require 5% of registered voters in the party (and they must be signed by party members). A curiosity is that since the ward boundaries were changed, the turnout for each ward was estimated to be 1/5 of the citywide total. Petition requirements for party candidates are based on registered voters, and the voting rolls are updated based on the new boundaries.

The ward requirement for independent candidates is 16 signatures (signatories of other petitions for the same office are not eligible). For Democratic candidates, the requirements were 29, 22, 23, 22, and 17, for the five wards, respectively (For Republican candidates, they were 4, 3, 5, 5, and 9). It might be a challenge to locate those Republicans. For the other parties the requirements may be as low as 1 (one). A Conservative in Ward 5 would require 2. The Independence Party requires, 2, 2, 3, 2, and 4 signatures. Note, because New York has an Independence Party, I would avoid using "Independent" as a proper noun. In New York, independent candidates may designate the name (and emblem) of a "political body".

In 2015, Tom DePietro ran for Common Council President on the line of the "All-Hudson Party." He had earlier sought the endorsement of the Democratic Party, but they had endorsed Victor Mendolia. Mendolia would later announce his withdrawal, but too late to have his name removed from the general election ballot. Mendolia endorsed DePietro, but it is believe by many that DePietro lost the general election to a Republican candidate because of votes siphoned off for Mendolia who was on the Democratic line. The timing of Mendolia's withdrawal announcement was quite close to what would have been the deadline for independent filing, and it is possible that DePietro began his petition effort based on knowledge that Mendolia was going to withdraw.

Uncontested primaries do not appear on the ballot. If you go to the Columbia Board of Election website, and look for past election results: for the 2015 primary, in addition to the results, you will find  a chart showing where and for which parties primaries were held. There are also sample ballots. Hudson only had Democratic primaries in two wards (you might remember that Torie was a pollwatcher in one).

Technically, petitions are filed by party members who would like someone to be the nominee of their party. The nominee must formally accept the designation. If a potential candidate declines, the petitioners may name a substitute.

The United States did not have government-printed (Australian) ballots until the late 19th Century. All elections were write-in. Some early decisions ruled that machine-printed write-ins were valid, and political parties began to print ballots, which they would distribute to voters who would take the ballot to the polls. Sometimes, the voter would take a ballot in exchange for a free lunch. Ballot stuffing would occur when several ballots would be folded inside one another, and then shoved into the slot in the ballot box. Ballots were sometimes printed with red or blue ink, so poll watchers could see who a voter was voting for. A voter might edit a ballot, or make his own ballot, but paper was remarkably expensive at one time. A newspaper might also print a ballot with the names of candidates they were aware of. Newspapers were more overtly partisan at the time, and they might use editorial judgment whether a candidate was a legitimate candidate.

The earliest charter for Hudson provided for hefty fines for persons who were elected, but did not serve. In a sense, you couldn't run for office, but you could be elected.

Write-in candidates are not required to make a declaration in New York (except for President). There are always a write-in line for each office on the ballot, but if an office is not contested in the primary, it will not be on the ballot, and thus there will be no write-ins.

Party members may also petition for an "Opportunity To Ballot". This simply means that those voters who want to be able to vote in the primary for that office. If there are no filed candidates, then there is only a write-in space. "Opportunity to Ballot" means that we'd like the opportunity to vote.

New York has what is known as a "Wilson-Pakula" authorization. A candidate for nomination has to be enrolled in a party, unless a party committee gives their authorization. So the Republican, Working Families, and Conservative parties authorized DePietro, a Democrat, to seek the nomination of their parties. He had to secure signatures from 25 Republicans, 2 Working Family, and 5 Conservative voters to qualify for the ballot. The OTB petition for the Independence Party required 10 signatures.

My guess is that Harry Haddad was careless, perhaps getting a signature from someone who had earlier signed another petition, or perhaps signatures from a non-Democrat. He only needed 29 signatures, so he might not have bothered with getting a large surplus, and its not like you are trying to get signatures from strangers rushing into a shopping mall, or at some public event. His brother was an alderman from the old Ward 1, and almost was elected mayor, so it probably is not an issue of being an unknown.

[jimrtex]

One may recall that it was a study of Hudson governance by a group of Hosftra law students that piqued Torie's interest in weighted voting. The Hofstra students were part of a seminar taught by Professor Ashira Pelman Ostrow. Now Ostrow has penned an article in the Florida Law Review.

ONE PERSON, ONE WEIGHTED VOTE (PDF)

The article gives short shrift to the seminal problem with weighted voting, which is inequality in voting power. But yes, as the article briefly notes, if both proportionality in voting strength to population and voting power can be met within the 10% constraint, then yes, at least for districts that have multiple sub jurisdictions, which the districts track, I agree that weighted voting is legal. Hudson does not meet either test. It has no sub jurisdictions, and unless one assumes that the two alderpersons from each ward elected at the same time, vote randomly vis a vis each other, it does not meet the equality in voting power test either. Failing to meet the first test causes a loss of the major policy reason for weighted voting. Failing to meet the second test is almost certainly fatal. Inequality in voting power, means inequality in representation, when it comes to the power to influence legislative outcomes.

The theoretical Banzhaf Power Index has twice been rejected as a measure of "voting power", which has said that voting weight should be proportional to population. The federal district court and 2nd Circuit measured voting weight vs. population in Roxbury Taxpayers. The fact that they did not measure proportionality correctly does not negate that.

The virtue of weighted voting is that it provides stability of boundaries and is a curb against gerrymandering. In his dissent in Wesberry v Sanders, Justice Harlan suggested that in the quest for equality, that apartment buildings and even houses would be divided. That has come to pass in Hudson.

In North Carolina, Rutherford (0.853 quotas) and Burke (1.144 quotas) together are almost perfect for two representatives (-0.15% deviation). Two make two equal population districts, a bit of Burke is added to Rutherford. There are no roads between the two counties, and a state park (South Mountain) sits on the border. Before 2012, HD-112 consisted of Rutherford and a clipping of Cleveland, and elected a representative from Rutherford. When the clipping of Cleveland was replaced with a bit of Burke, he was re-elected as the incumbent. When he resigned, Republicans from Rutherford, along with some from Burke, chose his replacement, who not unsurprisingly is from Rutherfordton.

Is this really providing equal protection, or does it prove the adage that justice is blind?

[Kevinstat]

Torie lost the Democratic primary for Common Council president tonight (well, last night now).  Unofficial results have him losing 274 to 415.  There were 19 write-in votes in the Independence Party primary (where there was an "Opportunity to Ballot" petition) that could have been for him, and I heard that he was seeking their nomination, but I've also heard that he would withdraw if he lost the Democratic primary.  I'm not sure if any Independent candidates filed for that seat or if Tom Dipietro will be unopposed in November.

It looks like Bill Hughes lost his primary for renomination in the redrawn Fourth Ward, and Rev. Cross (who also lives in what is now the Fourth Ward unless he's moved since last year) wasn't running again.  So there may be an all-white Columbia County Board of Supervisors next year.  Although for all I know Hughes's primary opponent Linda Mussmann could have also been black or a person of color.  I forget whether Hughes is on any other ballot lines.

I just remembered that Abdus Miah (sp?) is running for Supervisor in the Second Ward, and I guess he was unopposed in the Democratic primary.  He was also cross-nominated by the Republicans and I think Working Families.  I don't know if he'll have an opponent in November, but he'll likely win.