NYC Suffrage Bill Good for 800,000 Immigrants, Bad for City.
“Our City ‘Others’ Vote Law”
The recent legislation (Our City Our Vote) signed by Mayor Adam’s gives non-citizens living in NYC for a mere thirty days the right to vote in municipal elections. This type of legislation seems to appeal to the “do gooders”, Ivy League ideologues, the left fringe, so called progressives, as well as the biased media, but the tough, practical, hard nosed, and sometimes impolite NYC citizens have their doubts. First of all. these New Yorkers have already noted that the name of the bill is a misnomer—“Our City Our Vote”—should be: “Our City Others Vote”.
The (formerly) macho-talking candidate Mayor Adams once sounded NY tough on this bill too. But as he tells it, he has had “conversations” with certain elements in the City who have apparently turned his head. That does not bode well for those who believed candidate Adams. And it makes one wonder. Is Mayor Eric pulling a “Joe Biden, type “bait and switch” on the long suffering, tax paying, hard working New Yorkers who in the end pay everyone’s salary—even the Mayor’s. .
No one in the media or the “yea sayers” around the Mayor, seem to ever mention the fact that the bill gives the serious duty of voting to nearly a million immigrants who have lived (or will live) in the City a mere four weeks prior to voting. The right to vote is a civic responsibility and honor that should be restricted to those who are reasonably stable residents ( a year?) and who are at leaf conversant with city issues and who can make meaningful decisions about city government. How could the vast majority of these nearly one million new voters, actually fulfill that duty when many of them are unable to read or speak the local language (English or Spanish) and who may be residents for a mere thirty days? How could they possibly even have time get to know the basics of their new city before casting a ballot? How could they have a meaningful grasp of issues or pending legislation, or any notion regarding the ability of those who would govern the city? For these very reasons the “Our City Our Vote” (OCOV) bill was always a non-starter. Even far-left Mayor De Blasio did not have the courage to sign this legislation, which he left (a booby trap?) on the mayor’s desk for his replacement to deal with.
Then too the OCOV bill “devalues” the votes of actual long term citizens. In a city at the nadir of its economic, social and cultural life, every established, tax-paying, devoted, knowledgeable, long term citizen is needed to work for the city’s survival, to help turn the tide against the drastic effects of the Covid pandemic, of looming economic decline, increasing crime, street violence, middle class flight and incompetent leadership. New York is crying out for leadership that will spark communal action to turn the city around. That goal can only be accomplished with the help and cooperative enthusiasm of the working and middle class voters —- black, brown, Asian and white.
But what has Mayor Adam’s done? He has slapped these hard working, tax paying folks in the face, by actions that indicate (to many who are themselves recent American citizens), that going through the effort and difficulties of becoming an actual legal American citizen is a waste of time and effort. Why bother when Mayor Adam’s will give you the right to vote— with no personal effort? For this reason the OCOV bill is a sure prescription to devalue citizenship, as well as the duty to vote. As any economist will tell you, just give anything away free and it immediately becomes worthless.
Then, to add to this insult, Adams follows with actual injury. For by handing out suffrage to the near one million non-citizens and temporary denizens of the city he has thoughtlessly diluted the vote of formal NY City citizens who would be critical allies and elements in any plan for the survival and prosperity of the metropolis. With the stroke of a pen Adams has reduced the value of the vote of these actual citizens by ten percent, adding to the voter,rolls of 8 million with nearly a million new non- citizen voters.
By pandering to the fringe far left, Adam’s has diluted the voting power of the very people who he needs as allies and who have proved their staying power, their economic stability, hard work, and their long term investment in the viability and prosperity of the city. The new voters on the other hand often have no deep, financial or long term stake in the City and as such make them less more likely to suffer indifference, and to move on to new homes elsewhere more easily.
This is simply not the “tough New Yorker’s ” way to start the difficult job of a new administration, an administration that will have a very steep uphill climb to simply keep this vital city —the nation’s emotional heart and center of business, banking and culture—functional.
Mayor Adams seems like a decent, smart, and well meaning politician, but he needs to be “New York Tough” for this crowd. I really hope and pray he is up to the job. If he fails we get dystopia.
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