News Clips

Susan Lerner of Common Cause says she wants to be sure that pending investigations, one of which involves allegations of the mayor’s interference in Yeshiva education, are carried out. “The independence of the office going forward is paramount,” she said.

Common Cause New York made the case for ranked choice voting Tuesday night during a forum at New York Law School. “Folks were very attentive, very positive, there was a lot of energy in the room,” executive director Susan Lerner told The Point. Common Cause has a potential cause célèbre looming — the race for New York City public advocate. Seven Democrats have said they’re running in the special election to be held early next year. The field could end up including 10 to 15 candidates.

he chairman of the Metropolitan Transit Authority is stepping down, the latest in a series of departures within Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's administration since the governor was elected to his third term on Tuesday. Joseph J. Lhota, who was selected chairman by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate in a late-night Skype hearing last June, has faced criticism for simultaneously holding jobs that create the appearance of a conflict of interest.

There was plenty of blame to go around for the outbreak of voting machine breakdowns and long delays that plagued New York City polling places on Election Day, but no one was certain of a precise solution — only that one was needed fast.

In the midterm election, 38 million Americans in 37 states voted early. None of them were in New York. Instead, eager New Yorkers turned out in record numbers only to wait in long lines, in the rain, sometimes for hours at a time.

Across the country, millions of voters have been casting ballots early, surpassing expectations set by previous low turnout midterms and pointing to the possible existence of a very real Blue Wave—or maybe not. While it's probably still too early to know what any of this means, there are definitely some encouraging signs of bubbling civic excitement: In 26 states, more people have already voted than in the entirety of the 2014 midterms; despite blatant voter suppression attempts in Georgia, residents are smashing previous midterm early voting records; and young voters under 30 are casting ballots at unforeseen rates and gaining ground on the significant participation advantage held by older voters.