We all know our democracy is on the line this election, and candidates up and down the ballot will shape our nation for generations to come, but for voters in New York City, this Election Day also offers a rare opportunity. Flip your ballot over and you will find six proposals with a direct say in the future of our state and city. Most voters have never heard of these proposals, so we all need to make sure voters are ready for them come Election Day.
Proposal 1 will protect abortion rights and full equality in our state constitution. New Yorkers should vote YES to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution and protect against government discrimination.
Prop 1 closes loopholes that most New Yorkers don’t even know exist: Abortion rights and many protections against discrimination aren’t actually guaranteed in our state constitution. We all remember how angry and vulnerable we felt when the Supreme Court decimated Roe v. Wade. One of our last defenses against extreme politicians—the kind who want to criminalize abortion, oppose contraception, and demonize families who use IVF—was suddenly gone. Most of us thought our hard-won rights were secure, but suddenly they were ripped away.
We can’t afford to be caught off guard like that again. New York is increasingly a battleground state, and it was just the last election that an anti-abortion nominee for governor came close to winning. AWhile it may be true that New York has strong abortion laws today, we also know by now that laws alone just aren’t enough to prepare for tomorrow.
When we enshrine a right in the state constitution, we protect it from political interference—and extreme laws. A YES vote on Prop 1 also ensures that the protections we have against government discrimination because of someone’s race or religion are extended to include gender, age, ethnicity, pregnancy status, disability status, and being LGBT.
Proposals 2 through 6 are a last-minute power grab by Mayor Eric Adams that would reduce the accountability of the NYPD and other agencies in New York City government. City residents should vote NO to stop the mayor from weakening checks and balances, and limiting the power of the City Council.
Proposals 2 through 6 change New York City’s charter, which is effectively our city’s constitution. Any changes to such an important document should be the result of a careful and open process, but that’s not the way Mayor Adams wants it. He rushed these proposals to the ballot in late summer without adequate time for New Yorkers to give input. Now there’s almost no time for New Yorkers to learn about them, and he’s hoping they’ll sneak through.
These proposals give the mayor increased powers to block legislation and oversight he doesn’t like, even when these help New Yorkers and New Yorkers want them.
This all started because the City Council stood up to Mayor Adams and passed some laws over his veto, including the How Many Stops Act. That law recognized that transparency is essential to good governance and for any meaningful police accountability—but that wasn’t how the mayor saw things.
Now the mayor is trying to weaken the role of the City Council because he is angry that the Council won that fight. He is also angry that the council is trying to ensure it reviews the people he appoints to important positions—many of which, it is notable, are vacant today due to a series of alleged scandals. Whether it’s the NYPD, his appointees, or the Department of Corrections (which runs Rikers Island), Adams doesn’t want to be accountable to the City Council, or the New Yorkers they represent.
Prop. 1 to amend the state constitution and Props. 2 through 6 to amend the NYC Charter have enormous implications for freedom, safety, and democracy in New York—but they’re easy to miss.
Not only do we need to make sure our friends, families, and communities understand what’s at stake this fall, but we need to remind them that the ballot continues on the back. After voting for president and our representatives, we need to remember to flip our ballots over to vote YES on Prop. 1 to protect abortion and our freedoms in the state constitution, and vote NO on Props. 2 through 6 to prevent undemocratic changes to our City Charter.
It’s a small extra step that will affect our futures and our freedoms.
Donna Lieberman is the executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, which is a coalition member of New Yorkers for Equal Rights and New Yorkers Defending Democracy.