Civil Rights Groups Achieve Emergency Relief for Purged Voters in Lawsuit Against New York City Board of Elections
Order Requires NYC BOE to Provide Affidavit Ballots to Purged Voters
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WASHINGTON, D.C., November 5, 2016 - Following a hearing in a lawsuit seeking emergency relief for voters purged from the registration rolls in New York City, a federal judge ordered Friday night that the New York City Board of Elections must require poll workers across New York City to provide affidavit ballots to individuals who believe they were registered to vote but whose names do not appear on the registration rolls. Those affidavit ballots may be counted. The lawsuit, brought by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), Latino Justice PRLDEF and the law firm of Dechert LLP, against the New York City Board of Elections (NYC BOE) was filed in federal court in the Eastern District of New York on behalf of Common Cause and individual plaintiffs, which challenged the NYC BOE's premature removal of voters from the registration rolls, as violating the National Voter Registration Act.

After oral argument on the plaintiffs' motion before Judge Nicholas Garaufis, the court approved an agreement granting plaintiffs' requested relief providing that any voter who believes that they are registered to vote in New York City, but does not appear on the rolls, may vote this Election Day by affidavit ballot. The NYC BOE agreed to alert voters who may have been improperly purged that they have the right to cast an affidavit ballot and that those ballots may be counted after the election. The NYC BOE also agreed to take corrective action including issuance of instructions to poll workers on the new requirements, providing notice to voters regarding the new rules by posting notice on the NYBOE website, issuing a press release, and alerting people by way of the city's voting hotline. The BOE will provide additional guidance to poll workers prior to Election Day.

“The NYC Board of Elections has maintained a policy of purging voters from the rolls in violation of the National Voter Registration Act,” said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “Across the country we are seeing officials purge legitimately registered voters from the rolls despite the prohibitions contained within federal law. We will continue to fight against these policies to ensure that the rights of voters are preserved.”

"Yesterday’s Court Order provides necessary assurance that any eligible New Yorker who finds that their name does not appear in the poll book is entitled to an Affidavit Ballot, and that they must be advised that they will receive notice as to whether the ballot is ultimately counted," said Joanna Cuevas Ingram, associate counsel for LatinoJustice PRLDEF. "While we were able to ensure these requirements will be communicated to the public, as well as immediately to all 36,000+ NYC poll workers, it remains to be seen whether voters who were improperly removed from the rolls will have their ballots counted.”

“We are committed to ensuring that all eligible citizens are able to exercise the fundamental right to vote,” said Neil A. Steiner, partner, Dechert LLP. “Yesterday’s order ensures that eligible New Yorkers who have been improperly removed from the voter rolls will be able to cast a ballot and have an opportunity to have their votes counted.”

"We are grateful that we were able, with the federal court's assistance, to reach agreement with the NYC Board of Elections to provide voters with essential information about protecting their right to vote when they have been removed from the voter rolls and to emphasize to poll workers what the correct procedure is in that circumstance," said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause/NY. "We are committed to doing everything necessary to insure that the Board's procedures in maintaining the voter rolls fully comply with the requirements of federal law."

About the Lawyers’ Committee
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. Formed over 50 years ago, we continue our quest of “Moving America Toward Justice.” The principal mission of the Lawyers' Committee is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice under law, particularly in the areas of fair housing and community development; employment; voting; education; and criminal justice. For more information about the Lawyers’ Committee, visit www.lawyerscommittee.org.

CONTACT:
Stacie Burgess
Director of Communications and External Affairs
sburgess@lawyerscommittee.org
202-662-8317

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 29, 2016
Contact:
Tim Kauffman
202-639-6405/202-374-6491
tim.kauffman@afge.org

Federal labor leader hails court decision overturning NC voter suppression laws
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WASHINGTON – North Carolina native J. David Cox Sr., who leads the nation’s largest federal employee union, today hailed a federal appeals court ruling overturning the state’s restrictive voting laws.

“Thousands of North Carolina residents have been purposefully excluded from the democratic process through the discriminatory voting laws enacted by state lawmakers,” said Cox, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 670,000 federal and D.C. government employees.

“Thanks to this ruling, thousands of disenfranchised citizens in North Carolina will be able to exercise their right to vote in the upcoming election. But we cannot stop fighting until these discriminatory laws have been overturned in every other state where residents are being denied the right to vote.”

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The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union, representing 670,000 workers in the federal government and the government of the District of Columbia.

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