Westchester County Proposition 2
Voter Guide and Information
Supporting Prop 2 goes against most of what political science, and the framers of our government believe promotes a healthy democracy and accountability with voters. Executives should have 4 years, but legislators should be more connected to the passions of the people. Why do you think 4 years is appropriate? If the ability to “get things accomplished” and “saving money” is the criteria we should be considering most, why stop at 4 years? You could get more done and save more campaign money if you have 5 years (like Putin and Erdogan)? Why stop at 5? How about 10 years? Also, the argument that this is somehow a ‘campaign finance” reform issue, and that it would save expenses from running elections is disingenuous. County elections are going to be held in the same year as other going forward, so there will not be an additional expense from them as in years past.
Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Monroe, Eerie, Ulster, Dutchess, Onondaga, Yates, Jefferson, and more are just some of the majority of County legislatures in NY State that have 2-year terms for legislators. This is pretty normal, especially for large counties. Westchester (population) is the 4th largest county in the state, and one of the top 50 largest counties in the country, and growing fast. We are bigger in population than several states. Our county budget last year was $2.4 billion. Nearly one-third of our property taxes go to paying the County portion of our tax bill. The County legislators have a lot of power over aspects of our lives that most people (including me) are barely aware of. From a good-governance and good-democracy perspective, we should want legislators who remain accountable and responsive. Elections are the primary way that happens in a democracy. There is no argument I’ve heard to the contrary. I’ve got an honors degree in Political Science, and worked for major Democracy and Civil Rights non-profits (Brennan Center for Justice; Center for Constitutional Rights) I can assure you it would be hard to find any scholar who studies democracy that would disagree with what I am saying. They would describe this as incumbents attempting to entrench their power.
I would love for supporters of this proposition to explain to me why Country Legislators need twice as much time to legislate as congressional Representatives, NY State Assembly-members, and Senators have?
Hey, if I were an elected official, I too, would possibly be in favor of this Proposition, because it gives me 100 percent more job security and I would only have to worry about a potential challenger half the time. Basic political science. People like to keep and protect their jobs. Just a fact of being human.
Also, the argument that this is somehow a ‘campaign finance” reform issue, and that it would save expenses from running elections is disingenuous. County elections are going to be held in the same year as other going forward, so there will not be an additional expense from them as in years past.
What are some things that legislators have been unable to accomplish because of the current 2 year terms that they believe would have happened if only they had 4 years, and didn’t have to campaign?
Sorry, but campaigning is part of the job, and major part of what keeps elected officials accountable.
I’m not writing this to troll. I am genuinely persuadable if someone could answer any of the questions I have. I believe the onus is on the legislators proposing this change to make the case, beyond the basic, easily refuted arguments they’ve made (and why did they only put this on the ballot about a month away from the election? That’s not good governance. People should have time to debate this and be more informed.)
If people think voting/elections are an annoying inconvenience, that are too expensive, I think you’re going to love what Donald Trump has planned for us!
For those considering voting on Prop 2, which would increase the length of terms for Westchester County Legislators from the current 2 year terms (which are the same as member of NYS Senate, NYS Assembly, and House of Representatives in Congress), please consider that doing so not only deprives you as a voter of holding your legislator accountable, in deprives potential candidates, particularly women and minorities, from the opportunity to run for that office by 50 percent, and it enhances the ability of incumbents to raise money, giving them 4 years to raise funds instead of only 2 years. Finally, the members of the legislature who have put forth the proposal have made false claims that the majority of county legislatures in NY have 4 year terms, I called every county government in NY yesterday and verified that is untrue.
These are my findings. If you care about keeping our Democracy, I urge you to consider them closely (also, I realize this is just County-level government; I'm not a nut. But I can't stand that the County is making false claims about this, and not backing up what they say, or even answering questions with more than boiler-plate non-answers.)
There are 57 County legislative bodies in NY State (excluding NYC). 67 percent of county legislative bodies in New York have members that serve terms of less than 4 years (38). Only 33 percent have members serving 4 year terms (19).
Westchester is the 3rd most populace county in New York State, with 1,004,457 people, behind only Nassau and Suffolk, and is one of only 6 counties in New York with over, approximately, 500,000 people. Currently, all of those large counties have county legislators serving 2-year terms.
In fact, in New York counties with a population greater than 200,000, 80 percent of county legislators serve 2-year terms, while 23 percent serve 4 years terms. Of these large counties, there are only there are only 3 county legislatures in the whole state of New York that have legislators serving 4 year terms!
The vast majority of county legislators in New York serve 2 years, which is in-line with what legislators in the NY State Assembly, NY State Senate, and members of Congress in the House of Representatives serve.
The statement by members of the Westchester Legislature that most, or “over 70 percent” of county legislatures in New York have members serving 4 years is untrue, and completely unsupported by any factual data. It is hard to believe the claims of Prop 2 are anything but lies, imagined by them to deceive voters.
Westchester County legislators are asking voters to give them an additional 2 years of trust granting them 4 year terms, except they are proving themselves unworthy of the trust they seek by deceiving voters on the facts and substance of Proposition 2.
I personally fact-check and called every county government to verify this data, and I used US Census (2020) population data.
Members of the Westchester County Legislature who have put forth Prop 2 have Lied to Voters and Claimed Falsely that the majority of county legislatures in NY have terms of 4 years.
Data and Table Showing
How many county legislatures in New York have 2 year terms
for county legislators?
County |
Body |
Population (2020) US Census |
Term Length |
Suffolk |
Legislature |
1,525,920 |
2 |
Nassau |
Legislature |
1,395,774 |
2 |
Westchester |
Legislature |
1,004,457 |
2 |
Erie |
Legislature |
954,236 |
2 |
Monroe |
Legislature |
759,443 |
2 |
Onondaga |
Legislature |
476,516 |
2 |
Orange |
Legislature |
401,315 |
4 |
Rockland |
Legislature |
338,329 |
4 |
Albany |
Legislature |
314,848 |
4 |
Dutchess |
Legislature |
297,021 |
2 |
Saratoga |
Board of Supervisors |
235,502 |
2 |
Oneida |
Legislature |
232,113 |
2 |
Niagara |
Legislature |
212,666 |
2 |
Broome |
Legislature |
198,683 |
4 |
Ulster |
Legislature |
181,841 |
2 |
Rensselaer |
Legislature |
161,130 |
4 |
Schenectady |
Legislature |
158,052 |
4 |
Chautauqua |
Legislature |
127,657 |
2 |
Oswego |
Legislature |
117,528 |
2 |
Jefferson |
Legislature |
116,711 |
2 |
Ontario |
Board of Supervisors |
112,485 |
2 |
St. Lawrence |
Legislature |
108,501 |
4 |
Tompkins |
Legislature |
105,737 |
4 |
Putnam |
Legislature |
97,678 |
3 |
Steuben |
Legislature |
93,584 |
4 |
Wayne |
Board of Supervisors |
91,286 |
4 |
Chemung |
Legislature |
84,142 |
4 |
Clinton |
Legislature |
79,838 |
4 |
Sullivan |
Legislature |
78,613 |
4 |
Cattaraugus |
Legislature |
77,034 |
4 |
Cayuga |
Legislature |
76,253 |
4 |
Madison |
Board of Supervisors |
68,017 |
2 |
Warren |
Board of Supervisors |
65,737 |
2 |
Livingston |
Board of Supervisors |
61,840 |
2 |
Columbia |
Board of Supervisors |
61,570 |
2 |
Washington |
Board of Supervisors |
61,297 |
2 |
Herkimer |
Legislature |
60,144 |
2 |
Otsego |
Board of Representatives |
58,528 |
2 |
Genesee |
Legislature |
58,383 |
4 |
Fulton |
Board of Supervisors |
53,333 |
2 |
Montgomery |
Legislature |
49,527 |
3 |
Tioga |
Legislature |
48,452 |
3 |
Greene |
Legislature |
47,932 |
3 |
Franklin |
Legislature |
47,573 |
3 |
Chenango |
Board of Supervisors |
47,220 |
2 |
Cortland |
Legislature |
46,800 |
4 |
Allegany |
Legislature |
46,450 |
4 |
Delaware |
Board of Supervisors |
44,311 |
2 |
Wyoming |
Board of Supervisors |
40,544 |
2 |
Orleans |
Legislature |
40,357 |
2 |
Essex |
Board of Supervisors |
37,374 |
2 |
Seneca |
Board of Supervisors |
33,816 |
2 |
Schoharie |
Board of Supervisors |
29,718 |
2 |
Lewis |
Legislature |
26,587 |
2 |
Yates |
Legislature |
24,774 |
2 |
Schuyler |
Legislature |
17,898 |
4 |
Hamilton |
Board of Supervisors |
5,105 |
2 |
Statistics showing that the Vast Majority of County Legislatures in New York have 2 Year Terms for County Legislators
|
Total |
Percent |
County Legislative Bodies |
57 |
|
County Legislatures |
40 |
70% |
County Board of Supervisors |
17 |
30% |
|
|
|
2 Years Terms |
33 |
58% |
Less than 4 Years |
38 |
67% |
3 Year Terms |
5 |
90% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
11 |
19% |
4 Year Terms |
19 |
33% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Legislatures |
40 |
70% |
2 Years Terms |
17 |
43% |
Less than 4 Years |
22 |
55% |
3 Year Terms |
5 |
13% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
1 |
3% |
4 Year Terms |
18 |
45% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Boards of Supervisors |
17 |
30% |
2 Years Terms |
16 |
94% |
Less than 4 Years |
16 |
94% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
1 |
6% |
4 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Some members serving 2 years |
17 |
100% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Country Population > 100,000 |
23 |
40% |
2 Years Terms |
15 |
65% |
Less than 4 Years |
15 |
65% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
0 |
0 |
4 Year Terms |
8 |
35% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population > 200,000 |
13 |
23% |
2 Years Terms |
10 |
80% |
Less than 4 Years |
10 |
80% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
0 |
0% |
4 Year Terms |
3 |
23% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population > 400,000 |
7 |
12% |
2 Years Terms |
6 |
86% |
Less than 4 Years |
6 |
86% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
0 |
0% |
4 Year Terms |
1 |
14% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population >500,000 (appx) |
6 |
11% |
2 Years Terms |
6 |
100% |
Less than 4 Years |
6 |
100% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
0 |
0% |
4 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population > 1,000,000 |
3 |
5% |
2 Years Terms |
3 |
100% |
Less than 4 Years |
3 |
100% |
3 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
0 |
0% |
4 Year Terms |
0 |
0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population < 100,000 |
34 |
60% |
2 Years Terms |
18 |
49% |
Less than 4 Years |
23 |
68% |
3 Year Terms |
5 |
22% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
10 |
43% |
4 Year Terms |
11 |
48% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population 50-100,000 |
17 |
30% |
2 Years Terms |
8 |
47% |
Less than 4 Years |
9 |
53% |
3 Year Terms |
1 |
6% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
4 |
24% |
4 Year Terms |
8 |
47% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
County Population < 50,000 |
17 |
30% |
2 Years Terms |
10 |
59% |
Less than 4 Years |
14 |
82% |
3 Year Terms |
4 |
24% |
Mixed 2 year and 4 year terms |
6 |
35% |
4 Year Terms |
3 |
18% |
Download the spreadsheet with data showing every county legislative body in New York, and that the vast majority do not have 4 year terms. And 100 percent of large county legislatures in New York have 2 year term lengths for county legislators, such as Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Eerie, Monroe.
| county_legislature_data.xls |
