'A Sin Of Omission:' NY Officials Make New Push For Voter Reform
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is making a new effort to revamp the state's antiquated election system.
Standing on the site where the Bill of Rights came to be, Scheniderman re-framed the long-running reform effort.
"The quintessential American ideals of democracy and equal justice under law were born here," Schneiderman said. "All across America, those very ideals are being undermined."
Schneiderman's new bill allows for same-day voter registration and automatic registration when you give information to a state agency, WCBS 880's Alex Silverman reported.
"We also need to take voter registration process out of the 1980s and create an online registration portal," Schneiderman said.
It also allows for early voting at least two weeks before an election and absentee voting without an excuse.
"New York's antiquated voting laws a sin of omission because they have not kept up with the times and in fact they do keep people from voting," Donna Lieberman, of the New York Civil Liberty Union, said.
Supporters carried signs that said "Power to the People," and "Voting is Your Right," 1010 WINS' Juliet Papa reported.
Schneiderman says New York State has the fifth worst registration rate in the country.
The measures must get approval from the state legislature.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called for voter reform last year, following long lines at the polls in November.
Governor Andrew Cuomo also mentioned plans for early voting and same-day voter registration in his State of the State address earlier this year.