A group of 32 New York state senators is urging the state Board of Elections to change the language used to describe the first proposal on the NY state ballot this November.
The NY Equal Rights Amendment is a proposed law that would protect LGBTQ+ individuals from discrimination and provide access to abortion; however, the draft ballot question does not include the terms “abortion” or “LGBT.”
State Sen. Liz Krueger, a sponsor of the amendment, sought a change in a letter to the Board of Elections on Tuesday, signed by 31 of her colleagues.
“Over the years, New York State has positioned itself as a leader in the fight for abortion rights and access to abortion care, as well as LGBT rights”, she stated. “At a time when abortion rights are in jeopardy, voters must understand Proposal Number One will protect abortion rights in the state constitution. This critical point may be lost, however, if the word “abortion” is not included in the ballot language.”
Supporters are also concerned that the present draft text will not make the constitutional amendment’s goals plain enough, and that the proposal’s lack of clarity may be unlawful. The existing phrasing, they argue, may violate the state’s “plain language law,” which requires ballot questions to be written at or below an eighth-grade reading level. According to the Automated Readability Index test, it is now written at a college professor’s reading level.
The state election board is soliciting opinions on the proposed text until Friday. Comments can be emailed or submitted to the board, which is expected to evaluate them before finalizing the text for the election.
