New York’s Pandemic Voting ‘Chaos’ Set to Go Nationwide in November
In the last month, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) has been busy. She has chaired hearings in the House Oversight Committee on U.S. fighter jet programs and cybersecurity, called for investigations into the Trump administration’s use of federal troops in American cities and treatment of Planned Parenthood clinics, and cast numerous votes on the House floor.But Maloney has been without a key piece of information as she goes about her business: whether she won her primary election on June 23. Thirty-three days after primary day, Maloney holds a 648-vote lead over challenger Suraj Patel, earning 41.56 percent of the vote to Patel’s 39.93 percent, according to the latest tally from the New York City Board of Elections. With the race so tight and ballots still left to be counted, definitively declaring a winner has proved impossible.The delay is due to the coronavirus pandemic, which devastated New York and prompted many voters to cast absentee ballots, creating an avalanche of mail that utterl...
