By Hank Russell
Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) was joined by fellow Assemblymen Matt Slater (R,C-Yorktown), Phil Palmesano (R,C-Corning) and members of the Assembly Republican Conference to call for an immediate public oversight hearing to assess the security, integrity and fiscal oversight of the state’s voter registration systems.
The request follows the recent disclosure by the state of New Jersey that approximately 6,600 non-citizens were erroneously registered to vote. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill blamed the issue on a software error in the state’s motor vehicle voter registration process.
Slater and Palmesano, the ranking minority members on the Assembly Election Law and Ways and Means Committees, respectively, noted in their letter to Election Law Committee Chair Latrice Walker (D-Brooklyn) and Ways & Means Committee Chair J. Gary Pretlow (D-Mount Vernon) that, while there is no evidence New York has experienced a similar failure, lawmakers must ensure that the state’s voter registration system is protected.
The letter from Assembly Republicans also highlighted New York’s Green Light Law, which allows non-citizens to obtain state-issued driver’s licenses, making accurate technological safeguards between DMV transactions and voter registration critical. Voter registration services also extend to other agencies handling public assistance, Medicaid, disability services, and additional government programs.
New York’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) maintains active contracts with the implicated vendor, IDEMIA. According to Open Book New York, the vendor holds 44 contracts with state agencies totaling approximately $579.5 million. In response to Sherrill’s statement blaming the registration mishap on a software flaw, IDEMIA, a French technology company, responded by saying that any voter registration information it compiles must be reviewed by New Jersey’s Division of Elections before being utilized.
“New Jersey has a serious problem on its hands, and it’s incumbent upon us to make sure we don’t run into a similar issue in New York,” Ra said. “It’s entirely reasonable to believe that since non-eligible voters appeared on the rolls in New Jersey, it could happen in other states. Holding an oversight hearing is a proactive step — a responsible step — to assess New York’s own system.”
The Minority Conference stressed that the request is not an accusation of wrongdoing in New York, but rather an exercise of the Legislature’s constitutional oversight responsibility to protect election integrity, taxpayer dollars, and public trust.
While he said there is no proof that New York has had the same problems with their election system as New Jersey, Slater said it is the state’s duty to “proactively examine our own systems. An oversight hearing will provide transparency into how voter registration information is collected, verified, and shared, identify any vulnerabilities, and ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent responsibly to protect the integrity of our elections.”
“Safeguarding our elections is of the utmost importance,” Palmesano added. “What happened in New Jersey is concerning and must never happen in New York.”
The GOP Assembly said holding a joint hearing would provide the opportunity to hear from multiple entities, including the state Board of Elections, Department of Motor Vehicles, Office of Information Technology, vendors with direct interaction with voter-registration information, and independent experts. Topics would include:
- Existing safeguards against erroneous voter registrations
- Audits to detect potential system failures
- Citizenship data collection, verification, and transmission processes
- Vendor’s role and responsibilities, and comparison to New Jersey’s system
- Internal controls across voter registration agencies
- Corrective actions and planned improvements
- Procurement, contract oversight, performance, and fiscal impacts
Palmesano said holding such hearings is “crucial” and the state needs to make sure that those who are not citizens must not be allowed to vote. “When election systems fail, taxpayers are ultimately left to bear the costs of investigations, administrative corrections, and restoring public confidence,” he said. “Ensuring our election laws are properly enforced protects both the integrity of the ballot box and the interests of New York taxpayers.”
Long Island Life & Politics reached out to Walker and Pretlow to see if they will honor the GOP Assembly’s request and is waiting to hear back from them.