New York City’s election system is badly broken — and the proposed “fixes” from Mayor Eric Adams’ Charter Revision Commission barely amount to putting new windshield wipers on a totaled wreck.
Commission staffers flinch from facing the issues that skew politics far to the left, focusing instead on how low turnout in primaries lets small factions, such as the 60,000-member Democratic Socialists, grab the Democratic nomination and so become the prohibitive favorite in November.
So they suggest opening up primaries to all registered voters: Anyone could vote in any primary, so the Democratic line could be decided by unaffiliated voters, and Working Families members could jump into the Republican race.
Another idea is still more radical: Switch to a “jungle primary” among all registered voters, with the top two finishers moving on to face off in November.
Finally, the commission suggests moving city elections from odd to even years to