To the editor:
Why is the Village of Pelham Manor election on March 19? It’s a question I get a lot, and there is no good answer. Pelham Manor is an outlier in holding a March election that it runs itself. The practice wastes money and dampens participation.
First, the money: Pelham Manor pays thousands of dollars to run its own election, when Westchester County would run it for us for free (and that’s true whether the election is in March or November). Each of us pay county taxes, which support the Westchester Board of Elections (BOE) and its staff of trained election professionals. But instead of using the election services we have already paid for, Pelham Manor choses to run its own election. That means that Pelham Manor pays to print the ballots, hire the election workers and handle the other costs of local elections, instead of having the BOE do that work for free. Our village manager and staff have to spend time doing the administrative work themselves, when they could be working to address our other needs. It’s not a huge amount—it’s in the range of $6,000 to $10,000 a year—and a substantial chunk of our employees’ time, but our money and time should be spent on things that actually advantage us. (The only advantage the village board has cited is that this is “wholesome” and that people like voting in the firehouse rather than at Our Lady of Perpetual Help; the BOE has since confirmed that it could most likely run the election in the firehouse if that is truly the preference.) And while I have confidence in the integrity of our village manager, it’s hard to defend the practice of having a chief election officer who reports directly to the incumbent candidates.
Second, the participation: There is no question that more people participate in local elections when they are held in November, together with county, state and federal races. Most villages have moved their elections to the fall and seen participation rise substantially. Hundreds of people in Pelham Manor have signed petitions asking the board of trustees to hold a referendum, so that we can vote on whether our election should be in March or November. The board has never explained why voters should not have an opportunity to choose which date they prefer.
Of the 23 villages in Westchester, most have already modernized their elections. Only 10 villages still hold local elections in March, of which only five are run locally instead of by the BOE (and most of those involve uncontested, nonpartisan elections, the way Pelham Manor did it until 10 years ago). We can save money and increase participation by modernizing our elections, just as most other villages have done.
This may not be the biggest issue that Pelham Manor faces, but it is important. It presents the fundamental values of ensuring that no tax dollar is wasted, giving people opportunities to make choices and increasing participation in our democracy. However next week’s election is resolved, Pelham Manor should change its election practices to stop wasting money and should offer voters a choice on when they want to vote.
To watch a broader discussion on this topic, view this video of a village board meeting (at the 33-minute mark).
Katherine Pringle
26 Suburban Ave.
Ferdidand Spucci • Mar 12, 2024 at 9:44 pm
Perhaps it would be well to consider the fact that a local election should be just that… a vote on local matters and only local matters. By moving the election to November, we may get more voters coming to the polls but the National and State issues will be foremost on voters minds and the local issues will be largely ignored.
Spring election has only one purpose… putting the emphasis on local matters so that those who care will come out to vote on the local issues.
As the old saying goes ” If it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it”.
Peter Bazeli • Mar 13, 2024 at 2:16 pm
I don’t know anyone who would feel that important local issues aren’t a priority in their minds, regardless of whether we have a national or state election before us. We all care first and foremost about our families and our quality of life in our local Village, and I suspect that this gut priority would not abate in a November election. Nevertheless, it seems to me that if we don’t have strong voter participation because of the March date, and we believe in democracy, then something’s certainly broken – and we need to fix it. But beyond that, why are we spending up to $10,000 per year and countless hours of our employees’ time to perform an election that ought to be managed by the Westchester County BOE for free – even in March? Keep the March election date – but why are we insisting on spending money to manage this ourselves? I want Manager Luft focused on resolving the flooding problem in the month leading up to the spring rainy season instead of managing an election.
Ralph Pilla • Mar 12, 2024 at 6:38 pm
“ The board has never explained why voters should not have an opportunity to choose which date they prefer.” I believe we are owed an explanation. Also as to why Pelham Manor isn’t taking advantage of the free services of the county.