Rockland sues state over election law

Rockland County and its County Executive Ed Day are suing New York state to wipe out a new law that requires local elections to occur only in even numbered years. The law effectively eliminates one-year terms for local officials. The law also requires a one-time shortening of the term of some local officials by one year in order to align their elections with even years. Day is a Republican.

“This law is another attempt to override local charters, laws, and control in a home rule state and the oath I took is to our Federal and State Constitutions, our charter, and the people of Rockland County not Gov. Hochul,” Day said. “Local governments are the most responsive and responsible to the everyday person and play a vital governance role for drinking water, social services, sewage, zoning, schools, roads, parks, police, courts, jails, trash disposal and more and we have a constitutional right to say how our local officials are chosen.”

Day said that the state is “forcibly removing our right to self-govern and limiting the next term of the county executive and legislature to three years instead of four years required by our laws. By filing this suit, we are standing up for home rule and putting the state on notice that we have the right to control our own destinies.”

Proponents of the law felt that more people will participate in local elections if they coincide with state and federal elections. Rockland County says its position is that Rockland residents deserve to hear from their local candidates without interference from national races, which will drown out local concerns.

“Without citation to any evidence, the state believes voters are incapable of voting once a year due to being confused and fatigued,” said County Attorney Thomas Humbach. “I do not know about the constituents of the governor and the sponsors of this bill, but the voters of Rockland County believe in the democratic process, understand that local elections are important and can handle voting once a year.”

The lawsuit alleges that the county executive and legislature will suffer because they will lose one year of salary and one year of pension during the term that is reduced in length by a year. The lawsuit points out that the state law does not provide compensation for the losses.

When Gov. Hochul signed the new law, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, said, “I applaud Gov. Kathy Hochul for signing legislation that shifts some local elections to even-numbered years. A number of counties already hold even-numbered year elections for county executive and county legislator, and this would standardize that across the board as well as serving as a positive result for county races in Westchester. We would see increased voter turnout and greater participation in these crucial races here and elsewhere throughout the state.”