The proposed district also gives Democrats an advantage of about 30,000 more enrolled voters than Republicans, according to preliminary calculations by Dustin Czarny, an Onondaga County elections commissioner.
Commissioner in a Car: Happy Fall in Love with Your Party Day
This week I talk about the party enrollment deadline that is today, Valentine’s Day, or as I call it Fall in Love with Your Party Day. We must receive your enrollment change by midnight tonight. Online Voter registration is available at onvote.net. I also talk about the imminent release of new congressional maps and what are party nominations. Enjoy.
Subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and election news updates
Elections commissioners from NYS plead for more financial support – WXXI
“This $10 million dollars in extra funding that we are requesting, distributed by the State Board of Elections based on voter population, will allow the counties to have the flexibility they need to meet the needs that you, the legislature, have asked us to do in this upcoming presidential election,” Czarny said.
2024 NYS Budget Hearing Testimony
I had the privilege to appear before the NYS Assembly and Senate Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Local government February 6, 2024. I argued for Aid to Locality funding for County Board of Elections to administer the 2024 Presidential Election. Below is my panel’s testimony below:
And you can watch the entire hearing here:
Finally you can read my entire prepared written testimony below:
Testimony before The New York State Assembly & New York State Senate
Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Local Government
Tuesday, February 6, 2024. 9:30 AM
Dustin M. Czarny, NYSECA Democratic Caucus Chair, Commissioner (D) Onondaga County
Thank you for letting me testify today. My name is Dustin Czarny and I am an Elections Commissioner in Onondaga County and the Democratic Caucus Chair of the New York State Elections Commissioner Association. NYSECA represents the diverse 62 counties throughout New York State. I am proud of our bi-partisan Election Board system and I truly believe this is a model that should be followed nationwide. The Democratic and Republican Commissioners must work together to ensure the integrity of our election system. The built-in checks and balances helps NY avoid the partisan battles we see unfolding in other States. Commissioners must find ways to put partisan ideologies aside to meet the needs of the voters.
The Board of Elections have faced many hurdles over the last few years and has risen to the challenge. Since 2019 we have implemented election reforms such as Early Voting, Electronic Pollbooks, Universal transfer of registrations. We have administered one of the highest turnout Presidential elections in modern history. We have revamped a robust system of delivering absentee ballots to voters at the highest volume in NYS history. Implementing a cure system to prevent accidental disenfranchisement of absentee voters over technical deficiencies. We have done all that in the middle of a multi-year pandemic that challenged the very nature of our mostly in-person voting system and put the health of our election workers at risk. While no system that is made up of human workers is without its flaws, our Boards have risen to the challenge, and kept our electoral system afloat in New York.
The Executive budget has many positive aspects which I will detail later in this testimony. However there are two glaring needs for 2024 that it is silent on: Temporary workers and Public information campaigns to service the Presidential Election. At the close of 2023 many counties refused the budget requests of their bi-partisan election commissioners to increase staff. In some cases they refused to provide adequate money even for the bare minimum to field election inspectors. This has set up a dangerous situation as we head into what may be the highest turnout election in our generation. In 2024 we will be implementing Early Vote by mail for the first time. Other reforms such as online voter registration, pre-canvass of absentees, and expanded Early Voting will experience their first Presidential Election. Increase turnout and registration along with new reforms will tax the resources of many Boards of Elections. We need an additional $10 million Aid to Localities grant to be distributed by the NYS Board of Elections to host counties with the express purpose and permission to hire temporary workers and fund informational campaigns so we can administer an orderly Presidential Election in the fall.
The Executive budget comes along way for providing the necessary funding for the New York State Board of Elections. This is righting many years of misery when it comes to funding the State Board of Elections. It is a welcome and important step as the State Board of Elections will be a vital partner for County Boards. The State Board of Elections will shoulder the burden of Online and Automatic voter registration as well as tracking of our absentee ballots and the Campaign and Public Finance systems. The budget also properly funds the new Public Campaign finance Board and its mission to level the playing field for small donors in New York politics.
In 2024 we face implementing the expansive New York Early Voting by Mail reform in the middle of the Presidential year. This important reform will expand opportunities for voters in this crucial Presidential election. We applaud the Executive budget for once again including reimbursements for postage and mailing costs. It is imperative the legislature includes this funding in the final budget. It is unclear how many voters will take advantage of this new reform the Democratic caucus of commissioners looks forward to implementing it.
We have aging electronic poll books that are in need of being upgrade. The Executive Budget specifically addresses this and I applaud those efforts. Almost all poll books bought in 2019 at the adoption of Early Voting were 6th Generation IPad. While these are still serviceable under the current version of IOS (17), there is a strong likelihood when IOS 18 is released later this year it will no longer support 6th generation IPad. This will not affect the 2024 election but going into 2025 many counties will need wholesale replacements of their fleet of IPad to stay up to date on security enhancements. Having that money allocated in the 2024 budget will allow for counties to purchase that equipment for implementation in early 2025.
These annual funding requests will serve the needs of 2024 however we still need to address structural issues to maintain adequate minimum funding for Boards of Elections throughout the state. We must protect our Board of Elections from interference from local elected officials. We need to establish minimum staffing levels tied to voter registration rolls for each county Board of Elections. We need mandates for full time commissioners as our political calendars demand input and guidance year round. These guidelines can be established and monitored by our State Board of Elections to maintain the independence we need of our Boards of Elections while assuring that counties and New York State give the vital resources for us to accomplish our mission.
If we can establish these minimums New York should also establish an annual funding stream to offset some costs of host counties. Make no mistake, the primary responsibility for funding elections rests at the county level. We are not a mandate but a responsibility. However that responsibility also falls on the shoulder of New York State which sets election regulations and reforms that county Board of Elections must follow. A dialogue about how New York can assist counties properly staff and run Board of Elections is necessary as we embark on the changes to elections mandated by the State legislature over the next few years. New York is one of a handful of states that does not have annual funding streams for the local Boards of Elections. Doing so would eliminate the need for annual funding requests and allow for long term planning for Boards of Elections as well as bring parity of service to all citizens of New York no matter where they live.
Thank you very much for this opportunity to testify today. I hope that we can count on the legislatures support in defending our democracy here in New York.
Dustin M. Czarny
Commissioner (D), Onondaga County
Democratic Caucus Chair, NYS Elections Commissioner Association.
Subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and election news updates
Commissioner in a Car: Yes New York, we will have a Presidential Primary.
Today I talk about the Presidential Primary in New York April 2nd and why it might turn into a zombie primary on both sides. I also talk about testifying in Albany yesterday in the budget. Lastly an brief reaction to Onondaga County spending 100k on a lawsuit about the election alignment bill. Enjoy.
Subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and election news updates
Statement on Early Voting by Mail being ruled constitutional
Below is my full statement on the ruling by Hon. Christina L. Ryba that New York’s Early Vote by Mail process is constitutional and can go forward:
“I applaud Judge Chirstina Ryba on delivering this ruling quickly so that Board of Elections throughout New York State can prepare for the 2024 Presidential Election cycle. New Yorkers deserve the opportunity to vote by mail at their convenience. The New York State Legislature and Governor Kathy Hochul acted properly and constitutionally in passing this legislation last year. It is now time for Elise Stefanik and the New York GOP to cease this litigation and allow us to serve the voters of New York in an orderly manner. Village elections and the Presidential Primary are happening soon and this distraction of frivolous litigation to prevent New York voters from freely participating in our electoral process, in the manner they choose, is shameful.”
Dustin M. Czarny
NYSECA Democratic Caucus Chair
Commissioner of Elections (D), Onondaga County
Commissioner in a Car: Village Elections on the move…maybe
The villages of Baldwinsville, Fayetteville, and Liverpool may have ballot propositions to move their elections to November. I talk about how this is playing out, and the reasons behind it. I also talk about the Presidential Primary April 2nd in New York and where it stands.
Subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and eleciton news updates.
The Weekly Wonk: 2023 a year of change and expansion
Welcome back to the #weeklywonk. The #weeklywonk is my weekly look at the electoral and registration stats that make up our home, Onondaga County and New York. This article mostly looks at political subdivisions that are having elections this year. However, on occasion this article will look at election related topics and opinions that shape our electoral tapestry. This is the first #weeklywonk of 2024 as I was travelling over the last few weeks representing Onondaga County and New York at the Elections Assistance Commission and NYS Elections Commissioner Association. For the first #weeklywonk of the year I will look at a recap of 2023 for Onondaga County Board of Elections and my role as commissioner.
A year of change
Two of the biggest developments at the Onondaga County Board of Elections was a change in our two biggest vendors handling our voter registration system and voting machines. In January we transitioned from our registration vendor to Hart Intercivic’s Next Vote system. Our contract was up with our old vendor, and we chose Hart during an RFP process in November. The transition took all year and started off with redistricting to implement the new County legislative districts passed in late 2021. Even though the lawsuit to challenge these lines was still underway the new lines were in place for the 2023 election.
The transition to our new voting machines took longer. The RFP for the new voting machines had to wait for several vendors to have their new equipment certified by NYS Board of Elections. Onondaga County approved a $3 million dollar capital project to replace our aging 15-year-old image caste systems, An RFP involving four different vendors in May resulted in an award to Clear Ballot system. However, we had to wait until August for the final certification to come. Onondaga And Oswego Counties were the first counties in New York State to roll these next generation machines out in 2023 and they were a phenomenal success in the General Election.
Another major change was expanding to full on-demand printing with our poll book vendor Knowink systems. In 2019 Onondaga County chose Knowink as our poll book and on demand printing vendor with the adoption of Early Voting. The need to print ballots on demand was a necessity for Early voting as voters from all over the county could show up. Over the next few years, we experimented implementing on demand in our largest Election Day sites. In 2023 we decided to go full on demand. All 72 polling sites for our June primary and 145 polling sites for the General Election. For the most part it was a successful roll out and will be perfected in 2024.
I expanded beyond my state roles to national groups.
I have served as Democratic Caucus Chair for the NYS Elections Commissioner Association since 2017. In that role I have worked with NYS legislatures to help shape policy and testified during the NYS budget process as well. I travelled to Albany several times for educational days to represent my caucus and its wishes for legislation changes. Some of the items we asked for that were enacted was $10 million in capital funding, Clarity on the start of hand counting, expanded mail in balloting for New Yorkers with the Early Vote by mail, and Golden Day same day registration for the start of Early Voting. However, some goals only passed one house that would have greatly strengthened the structure and funding of County Board of Elections and that remains a top priority of 2024.
My years of work leading the caucus started to open opportunities for me on the national level. In April of 2023 I joined the “Faces of Democracy” campaign for Issue One. This campaign brings together bi partisan election officials to argue for federal funding for elections and protection of election workers nationwide. As part of this new role, I travelled to DC in June to Washington DC. Our group met with several lawmakers, and I had the opportunity to do a video interview with The Washington Post.
In July I represented New York at the first in person meeting of the Local Leadership Council of the Elections Assistance Commission. This newly formed group is also made up if bi partisan election officials with two representatives, one of each party, from NYS. The caucus chairs were selected in 2021 for this group, but the first in person meeting was this last July. We attended a briefing on participation in the 2020 and 222 elections from EAC, we also met as a group to give recommendations to the EAC on how to help localities prepare for 2024. Finally, we elected leadership to continue our work into 2024.
Finally, I was also able to join the Partnership for Large Election Jurisdictions (PLEJ). This new group focuses on Boards of Elections servicing areas over 300k population. In September I travelled to Los Angelos to their second in person meeting. We toured the LA County warehouse where they designed their own voting system that services nearly 2 million voters. Our conference focused on ways to service large amounts of voters with a focus on the challenges of getting funding in 2024. I am looking forward to continuing my membership in all three of these groups in 2024.
Voters reject election shenanigans and look to expand voting access.
Two major election stories in Onondaga County happened before the General Election. In June the village of Liverpool made history. After 20 years of uncontested GOP rule in the village of Fayetteville, the Democrats put candidates on the ballot and swept. A main plank in their election campaign was to look at having the Board of Elections run their elections in November. Voters overwhelmingly agreed with their position. Late in September they voted to have the Board of Elections run their elections and In June of 2024 the village of Liverpool will have a chance to vote to move their election to November going forward.
Another election in the Town of Manlius voters rejected a scheme to divide the town into wards. The Manlius GOP led a petition effort to hold a special election to alter how the Town Board members are elected. Town Board members have been elected town wide in Manlius since the founding of the town. However, since 2019 all town wide offices have gone Democrat so that the entire board is Democratic as opposed to all republican before 2019. This flip in fortunes led the GOP to try and mount a special election to divide the town in hopes of drawing a district to favor a GOP candidate. The voters turned out for a record special election that had two-hour lines to wait and vote AGAINST the proposal. The town then in the general election voted for a Democratic sweep again.
Democrats excel in general election despite low turnout lack of competition.
The 2023 General Election was maligned by Syracuse.com as the apathy election before voters ever went to the polls. However, they missed a brewing understory of Democrats doing very well in places where they were competing. Despite one of the lowest turnouts since 2015, and many offices left uncontested, Democrats picked up a ton of seats. Democrats flipped the County Clerk (though it took another 90k ballot handcount to get there), two family court seats, the supervisors in Skaneateles and Lysander, two Salina Town Board seats, and a Town Board seat in Geddes. They also held all seas they went into the election except for the Pompey town supervisor, that was an uncontested flip. Despite the large margin of the County Executive seat, it was a Democrat, Marty Masterpole, who won the most votes in Onondaga County. Still the Democrats choice to not contest 9 of the 17 County legislature seats certainly will haunt them as it may have been a chance to pick up a few seats.
That is, it for this edition of the #weeklywonk. Next week I take another look back at 2023 and analyze my website dustinczarny.com. After two years of running this informational website, I look at the metrics behind it. As always subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and election news updates.
Zoom with Czarny: Susan Lerner of Common Cause NY
This week I talk with my good friend, Susan Lerner, of Common Cause New York . We talk about the work her organization is doing to protect voters in New York. We also talk about her goals for the upcoming NY Legislative session.
Subscribe to dustinczarny.com for all content and election news updates
A fight over moving elections in a Onondaga County village could end up in court – Syracuse.com
If Freyleue’s group issuccessful, Baldwinsville voters could face voting on two competing referendums on March 19– one approving a June vote and the other approving the November one.
If both passed, that would create a conflict that would likely be settled in court, said Dustin Czarny, an Onondaga County Board of Elections commissioner.
Dustin M. Czarny 