Gov. Kathy Hochul last month signed a bill into law that will update the state’s election calendar, shifting many local elections that were held in odd-numbered years to even-numbered years.

Local election years almost always see low voter turnout, compared to election years with statewide or national races. In Harrietstown, for example, 1,382 ballots were cast in the 2021 race for Harrietstown town supervisor — that means fewer than 40% of active voters cast ballots that year. Just one year prior — a presidential election year — 2,831 ballots were cast in Harrietstown, representing approximately 81% of active voters. In North Elba, 2,137 voters cast ballots in the 2019 town supervisor race, meaning despite there being a highly-contested local race, less than half of registered voters turned up to cast a ballot. In the 2020 election, 3,768 ballots were cast in North Elba, representing approximately 79% of active voters. In Tupper Lake, 1,258 ballots were cast in 2021 — roughly 37% of active voters — compared to approximately 1,652 ballots in 2020, representing roughly 49% of voters.

The new state election law was designed to increase voter turnout and save taxpayer money by consolidating most elections to even years.

Here’s the good: Because local races, such as town supervisor races, are being shifted onto ballots with statewide or national elections, it’s very likely that voter turnout will increase. That’s important — voters should have a say in who represents them, especially at the local level, where many decisions tend to more directly impact their daily lives. This shift will also very likely reduce voter fatigue, and hopefully that will translate to less voter apathy.

Here’s the bad: Many local lawmakers say that local races could be overshadowed by state or national ones, in part because when more races are added to a ballot, it may push local races to a second page; the national races are listed first, from left, then state races and then local ones. We believe that’s of lesser concern than another impact that this may have: The impact of party line voting on local elections. At the local level, a candidate’s party line often doesn’t reflect how they will vote once elected, what their priorities are or how good of a fit they are for the role. It’s not uncommon for voters of one party to back a candidate from a different party at the local level. We hope that voters continue to weigh each candidate on their merits and their record, rather than voting straight party line. Another negative is the confusion that this change will inevitably cause. It’ll be an adjustment for candidates and voters alike: The next time two-year seats are up for election after Jan. 1, 2025, they will be for one year before returning to a two-year cycle. Four-year seats will be up for election for three years starting in 2025 and will return to a four-year cycle the next election.

Here’s the murky: The law is intended to save money by moving most elections to even years. It’s also intended to lessen the burden on local boards of election by consolidating election years. But will it actually achieve these goals? Local officials are skeptical, and we are, too: The law does not include town justice seats; therefore, those elections will continue to be held on odd-numbered years. It does not include Essex County races — county clerk, sheriff, district attorney, family court judge, county court judge and surrogate — town justice positions or elections for villages, such as Lake Placid, Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake. This means that local boards of election will probably have to do the same amount of work as they normally would, just at different times. Jay town Supervisor Matt Stanley also says that this “saves no money,” and we’re inclined to agree. Time will tell whether or not that’s correct.

It’s too soon to say what impact this change will really have. Overall, we hope the expected uptick in voter turnout will outweigh the negatives.