Albany Dems open door to delayed NY-21 special election

Legislation introduced without any fanfare on Friday could extend the timeline for holding special elections in New York.

The bill from Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie amends the special election calendar so that a vacancy in a congressional seat could last months longer than the 90 days in statute now. The law would allow the governor to schedule a special election on the same day as the general election of the year a vacancy occurs, but the consolidated elections would not be required.

Under existing state law, the governor has 10 days after a resignation from a legislative seat to issue a proclamation scheduling a special election. Special elections for congress, under the current system, need to be held within 80 days – and not less than 70 days – of the proclamation being issued.

There are a handful of special elections possibly occurring this spring in New York that could be impacted by changes, but the most high-profile possible race will be to fill the seat held by U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik. The upstate Republican is expected to take over as ambassador of the United Nations and could vacate her seat as early as February, triggering an election by early May under the existing election law requirements.

If Stefanik’s seat becomes vacant it will narrow the slim majority congressional Republicans have in the House of Representatives, which could make it more difficult for House Speaker Mike Johnson to move legislation through his chamber. An update to the special election calendar in New York that extends this potential vacancy would prolong this dynamic.

Stewart-Cousins said in a statement that the legislation is a “common-sense approach that saves taxpayer dollars while maximizing voter turnout.”

“In this moment of national uncertainty, we must protect democratic participation while ensuring the government remains fiscally responsible. This legislation achieves both,” the leader said.

In a statement, Heastie also said the bill could save money and drive up voter participation. “This is a common sense measure that provides the Governor with flexibility to align these elections to ensure maximum efficiency,” he said.

Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt described the legislation as a “power grab.”

“This disgraceful move will deny over 750,000 New Yorkers their voice for months, all because Democrats are terrified of losing power and will do anything to stop President Trump from putting America first,” Ortt said in a statement. “This is the Democrats telling the voters of New York to go to hell.”

Democratic lawmakers in both houses of the state legislature first conferenced this issue at the end of January.

Asked last week about the possibility of updating the election calendar, a spokesperson for Governor Kathy Hochul said, “Governor Hochul believes it’s critical to increase voter turnout and reduce the cost of election administration and she would support legislation that achieves that goal.”

The legislation introduced by Heastie and Stewart-Cousins also allows for a deviation in the existing special election calendar to fill vacancies in the state legislature and extends the time the governor has to issue a proclamation from 10 days to 15 days.

Introducing the legislation on Friday means it will be ripe for passage as soon as Monday, Feb. 10, assuming it moves through the rules committees in both houses and is not amended over the weekend.