Voters Still Voiceless, Unite NY Calls on Candidates to Embrace Reforms
Timothy Dunn
In a Crowded Field for Governor, Four Candidates Have Voiced Positions to Empower Voters
Albany, NY – With the race for Governor of the State of New York now moving into the primary season, Unite NY is calling for issues of systemic reform to take centerstage. Currently, four candidates have spoken out, but Unite NY is calling on every New York gubernatorial candidate to embrace reforms voters are clamoring for to help fix the state’s broken political system and start putting power back in the hands of the people.
Unite NY is disheartened that in a race with at least eight candidates, only four have thus far embraced key reform policies that independent polling has confirmed to have strong public support such as: open primaries; ranked choice voting; term limits; vote from home initiatives; independent redistricting; initiative and referendum; as well as reducing ballot access requirements so more candidates can run on minor party lines.
Unite NY is committed to securing a ballot line for the 2022 election and the candidate for Governor who secures that line must speak out on policies such as these which will inject more democracy in our government and hold elected officials accountable to the people.
Unite NY Founder Martin Babinec said, “For more than a year our organization has been leading the call for reforms that will help shift power from the major party bosses back into the hands of the voter. We will be securing a ballot line for the November election with a candidate on the Unite line who has publicly voiced support for reform measures that will help restore trust in our democracy. We’re calling on every candidate, from every party, to not only embrace these reforms, but articulate them so voters know where they stand and what is their plan for making these needed reforms a reality.”
To date, only four candidates in the race for Governor have embraced reforms such as open primaries. Republican Harry Wilson embraced a host of reforms, including ballot access, ranked choice voting, initiative and referendum when he unveiled his turn around New York plan in March.
Libertarian Larry Sharpe voiced his support for open primaries and ballot access on March 1. And Republican Andrew Giuliani supported open primaries in an interview with NY 1 in early March. Just this weekend, Republican Rob Astorino used social media to note that it just makes sense for the GOP to open their primary process if they want to win.
Unite NY is working hard, through programs like its Voter Empowerment Index to track and quantify the deep support New York voters are showing for reform. It is time for every candidate to step up to the plate and embrace a reform agenda.
About Unite NY
Unite NY is a new political home in New York State for Republicans, Democrats, conservatives, liberals, and independents to come together to seek common sense solutions. Focused on a non-partisan approach to fixing real problems in our government, democracy, and economy, Unite NY supports candidates who understand working together is the only way we can succeed. Learn more at www.UniteNY.org.
