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Here's to 'Frivolous' Elections

New York has set an all-time record for cancellations over the past eight weeks. Elective surgeries, conferences, athletic events, religious observations, parades, graduations and more simply stopped happening. Thousands of COVID-19 deaths—and the risk of more—have justified these sacrifices, and the increasing numbers of jobless and hungry in our city make it awkward to complain about them.

The governor by executive order last week cancelled the planned June 23 special elections for several offices, including Queens borough president and a vacant City Council seat in Brooklyn. The state Board of Elections decided Monday to cancel the presidential primary scheduled for the same day. While Congressional primaries will still occur in several districts, the move reduces chances for disease transmission at polling places because most voters won't have a contest to vote on.

The special elections will shift to November. The presidential primary will never occur. Even though their candidate has left the race, Sen. Bernie Sanders' supporters were upset because they'd hoped to use the primary to amass more delegates and strengthen their hand in fights over the party platform. The co-chairman of the state Board of Elections, Douglas Kellner, dismissed that desire: “What the Sanders campaign wanted is essentially a beauty contest that, given the situation with the public health emergency, seems to be unnecessary and, indeed, frivolous.”

COVID-19 is an extraordinary threat that might justify the extraordinary step of cancelling an election. Still, it's a little frightening to hear an election official describe as “frivolous” the desire by some voters to exercise their franchise to achieve a political goal. That's what all elections are for, and there's danger in letting officials decide when democracy is, in their view, valuable enough to occur.

Democracy is often inconvenient. Our elections are characterized by expensive voting operations, long-shot candidates, low-turnout contests, write-in votes and other inefficiencies. Voters often show up at the polls to check the box for a candidate they know will not win in order to send a message, or demonstrate loyalty, or express other sentiments that are their fundamental right even if they don't strike the rest of us as strategically sound, or even rational. And it's easy to shrug off races for lower-profile offices, like borough president or Council, but doing so means millions of voters living for months without elected representation. That matters.

When crisis strikes, we accept measures we normally wouldn't. Some of those changes persist even after the crisis fades. They become part of the baseline; we digest them without notice. Postponing or cancelling democracy should never go down easy.

Stay healthy,
Jarrett Murphy, executive editor
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Top Stories
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It’s Worse Than You Think Out There. Maybe Bad Enough for NYC to Borrow to Pay the Bills. ([link removed][UNIQID])
The COVID-19 fiscal crisis has changed much about life in the city. Might it also weaken the prohibition against IOUs?

Can NYS Run a Safe Primary in June and Accommodate Voters With Disabilities? ([link removed][UNIQID])
The governor’s order only allows for mailing in paper ballots and doesn’t provide an accessible way for those with visual impairments or dexterity issues to vote privately.

More Questions Than Answers About the Racial & Ethnic Skew in COVID-19 Deaths ([link removed][UNIQID])
There’s been less discussion of how underlying conditions and longstanding inequalities actually translated into deaths, or about other factors that might help to explain the racial disparities characterizing COVID-19’s impact.

In Fight to Save Summer Youth Employment, Advocates Push City to Let Teens Work Remotely ([link removed][UNIQID])
Youth advocates and SYEP participants say cancelling the program this summer will be a financial hit to low-income youth who rely on those jobs.

Demands for Deeper NYC Homeless Aid Despite Budget Tightening ([link removed][UNIQID])
As formal budget negotiations get under way homeless advocates have outlined a series of long-term priorities and acute coronavirus-related needs they say the city must fund.

Hotels as COVID Convalescent Homes: Challenges for Patients, Staff ([link removed][UNIQID])
After three deaths at a hotel in Manhattan earlier this month, New York City promises increased resources for its program providing isolation hotels.

Read our in-depth coverage of the crisis here. ([link removed][UNIQID])
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** Voices of New York
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Amplifying NYC's Ethnic and Community Press

Chinese Community Group Offers Aid & Lodging to Restaurant Workers ([link removed][UNIQID])
Many immigrants from China’s Fujian work at takeout restaurants outside of New York, which often provide free food and lodging to employees as an industry standard. As the restaurants close down, many workers have become homeless.

‘Worse Than 9/11’: Coronavirus Crisis Feels like Final Blow for Yellow Cab Drivers ([link removed][UNIQID])
"There are no tourists. We are living through a period worse than 9/11. Two or three hours can pass before anyone gets into the cab. People would rather walk because they feel that being locked inside a taxi is a risk," one driver told El Diario.


** Una Ciudad sin Límites
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City Limits en Español

Más preguntas que respuestas sobre muertes de afroamericanos y latinos por COVID-19 en Nueva York ([link removed][UNIQID])
Existen otros factores además de la aparente obvia explicación de la pobreza que se han discutido menos como condiciones subyacentes y las desigualdades de larga data que se tradujeron realmente en muertes.

Our reporters are doing everything they can to keep you informed. In this time of great uncertainty, you can depend on us to tell you the truth. But we need your help to keep going.

Not everyone can afford to invest in local journalism right now but we also can't afford to lose it. Can we count on you?

Yes, I'll become a sustaining member today to help get City Limits through this crisis. ([link removed][UNIQID])


** City Views
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Opinions on Policy and Politics

Opinion: Got Dreams of a PPP Loan? Get a Good Bank First ([link removed][UNIQID])
'You might consider applying to a CDFI, especially if you have a relationship with them.'

Opinion: Now More Than Ever, Indian Point Must Close ([link removed][UNIQID])
'The terrible COVID-19 epidemic shows that unlikely catastrophic events occur if we wait long enough and do not take proactive measures to reduce the risks of such events.'

Opinion: Closing Indian Point Puts Phantom Risks Ahead of Real Perils ([link removed][UNIQID])
‘Shutting down Indian Point without building equivalent reliable renewable power is a catastrophic case of putting the cart before the horse, ensuring carbon lock-down for decades to come.’

Opinion: NYC Can’t Jail Its Way Out of a Public Health Crisis ([link removed][UNIQID])
'Mayor de Blasio’s new budget, which prioritizes our city’s paramilitary police and corrections department over much-needed public services, indicates the city believes otherwise.'

Opinion: Essential Workers – All of Them – Deserve Bonus Pay ([link removed][UNIQID])
'It’s time to recognize the life-saving work being done by maintenance and other essential personnel who are keeping housing and food centers safe and protecting vulnerable people from homelessness, hunger and illness.'

Opinion: Don’t Puncture the City’s Lungs By Cutting Park Funds ([link removed][UNIQID])
‘In these scary days of coronavirus, Central Park and the other green spaces in our city refresh and reassure us; even though we need to stay six feet apart due to social-distancing, the parks beckon.’

Coronavirus Resources

From Aid to Z: The Basics on COVID-19 Assistance for Renters, Homeowners & Businesses ([link removed][UNIQID])
Some resources and clarifying information for residential and commercial tenants and homeowners. we are staying committed to our well-being while cooped up.’

• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene ([link removed][UNIQID]) COVID-19 information page

• Latest case count and other information from the New York State Department of Health ([link removed][UNIQID])

• the U.S. Centers for Disease Control ([link removed][UNIQID]) on Coronavirus

• the World Health Organization ([link removed][UNIQID]) situation reports on COVID-19

Need help or info? Check out our resource library. ([link removed][UNIQID])
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