As you watch the @BOENYC #MailInVoting debacle unfold, here is your semi-regular reminder that in NY State the Board of Elections isn't staffed by civil servants or election professionals, it's staffed through political patronage by the political parties.

This is actually baked into the NY State Constitution. The two biggest political parties (read Democrats and Republicans) get equal representation in the Election Commissioners at every level.

These commissioners are in charge of hiring BoE leadership and so on down the line.

In NYC, each County Party, AKA County Committee (you may have heard me mention those before) recommends candidates for Board of Elections Commissioner when a term is up. The City Council members of that county then vote on the nominated candidate.

Technically the Council can overrule a Party pick. It happened once when I was Secretary of @ManhattanDems. Melissa Mark Viverito tried to ignore the Manhattan Party's pick. It resulted in a lawsuit and MMV ultimately backed down. It was an intense thing to watch.

If you're thinking political parties shouldn't have influence over Boards of Election, you'd find a lot of agreement. Elected Secretaries of State in other places can also have severe partisan leanings, but at least the public can replace them. If you want a solid BoE in NY...

You have to know the system. Here goes:

1/2 Party involvement is in the State Constitution. Changing that requires the State Legislature to pass a bill to put it on the ballot for voters...TWICE

Contact your State Assembly member and State Senator.

2/2 County Committees in NY (really everywhere) have ELECTED leadership. Sure, we can't vote for our Boar of Election leadership, but we can vote for the people who do.

You can also RUN for County Cmte. There are thousands of empty seats & dozens of underepresented communities

Practically, though, the Commissioners are chosen by the District Leaders.

The NYC Parties are two levels:

County Cmte members represent small areas - think elected Party block captain.

District Leaders represent a part of an Assembly district - think elected Ward Boss

You can vote for your County Committee representatives in the Democratic Party primary every two years. Your next chance:

Manhattan/Staten Island - 2021

Brooklyn/Queens/Bronx - 2022

If the Trump era has taught us anything, it should be voting matters. And that whoever controls how voting happen matters, too.

But all political power ultimately arrives at voters. That's the great thing about our country. Follow a thread far enough & you end up at an election.

So, if you're reading this, the fate of our country and the integrity of our democracy is once again in your hands. Mistakes happen, but they don't get corrected without accountability.

Know how ur system works, & vote for the tiny office you never heard of because, at some point, it has power.

Of course, that's easy to say - I know this information isn't readily available.

So, If you have questions, want to join County Cmte or want to learn more, comment/DM.

Oh, for reference https://twitter.com/crystalrhudson/status/1310709473678368769?s=19

And for those who got an incorrect ballot https://twitter.com/NYCVotes/status/1310728839421669378?s=19