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Register to Vote:

Info for Feb. 5, 2008
Presidential Primaries

For registration and absentee ballot info, read/download PDF file "Presidential Primary Plans and Calendar" and see page 7.  

For a Voters Guide about the candidates, go to http://www.lwv.org/ and click on Presidential Primary Voters' Guide

For other voting info go to the New York State Elections website http://www.elections.state.ny.us/

or the Westchester Board of Elections website at http://www.westchestergov.com/boe/

As you already may know, the Smart Voter website was developed by the LWV of California and has been used to inform voters in that state for over 10 years. This fall, the Smart Voter website in NY will contain information on candidates for the offices of U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, NYS Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, Comptroller, Senate, Assembly, and Supreme Court. Candidates will be able to access the site via password to post information about their candidacies, including pictures and biographies, endorsements, campaign events, and issue papers. The site is completely free for candidates and voters to use. Much of the information from state and local voters guides has already been uploaded to the site. You can view this information at:

www.smartvoter.org/ny/

Lastly, Leaguers in Westchester County ONLY will be able to inform voters that they can input their address and access a personalized ballot (for both state and local candidates and ballot propositions) and their polling place. Westchester, we need you to publicize more than anyone BECAUSE if we show the BOE that we were successful in your County---they will want to help us w/other Counties!!!!

The rest of the state will not be able to get such personalized information on Smart Voter, but will still be able to access quite a bit of information.

If all goes well w/Smart Voter in 2006----we hope to expand it so that not only Westchester County people can access their personalized ballot and their polling place---BUT ALL VOTERS FROM THROUGHOUT NYS CAN!!

To Use SmartVoter

Just enter your address in the "Find My Ballot" box and click on "find Ballot and Polling Place". The information for it will come up on the next screen. Please note that all candidates are encouraged to put information about themselves on SmartVoter, at no cost. Your Local and County Leagues work together to bring you this information on www.SmartVoter.org, a League of Women Voters Education Fund website. 

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VOTER REGISTRATION TOOL

We encourage you to link to the online Voter Registration Tool on the LWVUS Web site. To use it, go to www.lwv.org/RegisterToVote. This tool is a quick and easy way to register to vote.

VOTER SERVICE
Moderators Needed!

Contact Laura Fratt (723-5108 or fratt@verizon.net).

In 1991 the League of Women Voters of Westchester established the Westchester Fair Campaign Practices Committee as a separate and independent entity. The League plays no role in the Committee's deliberations or decisions; the League does provide support services and administers the funding. The Committee is comprised of community leaders who represent a wide range of public interests and are recognized as being independent and fair minded. Members representing recognized political parties serve ex-officio without vote; they contribute political perspective and experience to the discussion. Link here to the FCPC.

About the 2007 Voters Guide

The League of Women Voters of Westchester announces that its popular Voters Guide, including a Spanish language edition, is now available. For each language, there are two separate versions-one each for Northern and Southern Westchester.  The Guide contains a sample ballot and information on the candidates, ballot propositions, League-sponsored candidates' debates, and other information about the November 6th election.

The League will distribute more than 110,000 Guides through the mail and at libraries, municipal offices, community centers and other public places. The complete Guide is also available on the League's web site, www.LwvWestchester.org.  Additional information about the candidates is available at the League's interactive website, www.SmartVoter.org, where users can access personalized ballot and polling place information. Voters Guides may also be picked up at the League office, 200 Hamilton Avenue, White Plains; phone 949-0507. 

Major Benefactors who have underwritten the 2007 Voters Guide are Verizon Foundation and the Westchester Community Foundation.  Both grants are in support of publication and distribution of the annual Voters Guide in English and Spanish editions. 

"Verizon is pleased to help Westchester citizens in the ability to understand issues and assist those struggling to be informed.  Verizon is pleased to partner with the League of Women Voters of Westchester in advancing literacy initiatives," said John F. Butler, Director, Verizon Community Affairs. 

According to Catherine Marsh, Executive Director of Westchester Community Foundation, "Our election process depends on well-informed voters. There is no better source of nonpartisan information than the League of Women Voters Guide. The Westchester Community Foundation is proud to support the League's invaluable work."

Other sponsors include the Ed Lee & Jean Campe Foundation, The Glickenhaus Foundation, the Frederick P. and Sandra P. Rose Foundation, and the Hunter Foundation.

"The Voters Guide would not be possible without the generous support of our corporate and charitable donors, for which we are grateful. We also depend on individual contributions from the voters we serve in Westchester which allow us to continue providing the Guide and www.SmartVoter.org.  Contributions in any amount are greatly appreciated," said Mary Beth Gose, president of the LWV of Westchester. Tax-deductible gifts can be made to the LWV Education Foundation and mailed to the above address.

The League is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization that does not support or endorse candidates. Membership is open to all citizens over 18, and associate membership is available to non-citizens and minors.

Voter Guides 07

Voter Guides in English for Westchester County are ready. Download pdf for Northern Westchester or for Southern Westchester.
And in Spanish:
GuiaVotantesNorte
GuiaVotantesSur

Corrections

Complete information about party endorsements for the candidates for New York Supreme Court Justice, 9th District were not available at press time, but are presented below:

Robert M. Berliner – D, WF
Francis A. Nicolai – D
Elaine Slobod – D, IN, C, WF
Rory J. Bellantoni – R, IN, C, WF
Christine Krahulik - R
William E. Sherwood – R, IN, C, Right to Life
Anthony J. DeCintio, Jr. – Right to Life
Anthony D. Zepf – Right to Life

Abbreviations: D – Democratic; R – Republican; IN – Independence; C – Conservative; WF – Working Families

Southern Westchester Voter Guide correction:

Please note that page 15 of the Southern Westchester Voters Guide should state (Vote for Three) in the election for Greenburgh Town Justice.

If you didn't make it to the New Castle League's March 21 meeting on this topic, you can read here below a summary of  what has led up to the current situation on voting machines, as provided by speakers Marion S. Sinek, at right, HAVA advisor to Senator Hillary Clinton, and Laura Porter, Electronic voting technology specialist, LWV-Westchester.

Fact Sheet as of March 21, 2007, provided by speakers Marion S. Sinek, HAVA advisor to Senator Hillary Clinton, and Laura Porter, Electronic voting technology specialist, LWV-Westchester:

1. The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) was passed by Congress in response to the problems with the 2000 election.  It established the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) requires replacement of punch card and lever machines; establishes minimum standards for administration of federal elections, etc.

2. N.Y. State passed the Election Reform and Modernization Act (ERMA) of 2005 to implement HAVA in NY.  It calls for replacing lever machines by the primary election of 2007 to comply with requirements to make voting machines accessible to handicapped voters and meet other HAVA standards.

3. ERMA, among other things, called for the Election Commissioners of each county to select the machine for that county from among voting machines certified by the State Board of Elections (SBOE).

4.  ERMA and the subsequently adopted standards expanding on the legislation, comprise the toughest standards of all US states, including a Voter Verified Paper Trail (VVPT); stringent audit requirements and requiring vendors to put into escrow the software codes of their machines.  NYS was the first to require compliance with the newly adopted  EAC standards for voting machines.

5. Certification of machines by the SBOE became problematic because vendors had trouble meeting the stringent standards set by NY law.  As of February 2007 only two or three machines appeared to be close to receiving certification.  These include the Liberty DRE, a Diebold Scanner and a Sequoia scanner.

6. Two types of machines are included in consideration: Precinct based Optical Scanners (PBOS) supplemented by ballot marking systems for handicapped accessibility and Direct Recording Electronic (DRE).  Many lobbying organizations, including the LWVNYS, favor the PBOS systems because it is a paper ballot based system, easy to recount and verify, is less prone to security flaws and is deemed to be cheaper and easier to store.

7. As part of HAVA  each state is entitled to federal monies to fund these improvements.  NY received about $220 million, of which $50 million was for machine replacement.  Since the original HAVA deadline of 2006 has not been met the Department of Justice and the EAC are moving to ask the state to refund the $50 million.  Efforts are under way to keep the funds because NY is making a strong effort to comply as soon as possible and there have been unusual factors involved.  The outcome of this process is not yet clear.

8. Timing has been a critical problem.  The original intent was to have machines certified by late 2006, ready for ordering and delivery by early 2007.  This turned out to be unrealistic.  Vendors did not submit their machines in time due to the difficulty in meeting the new standards and the company hired by NY for $3 million to do the technical testing, Ciber, Inc. , failed to receive authority from the EAC to certify voting machines and therefore NY suspended further testing by Ciber  in January 2007.  As a result the State Election Commissioners Association passed a resolution calling for implementation to be deferred to 2009.

9. A05170 was recently introduced by Assembly member Galef, with significant support, calling for implementation of paper only ballot technology in a uniform statewide system.  It is not clear whether Senate leadership will support a companion bill.

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