To the editor:

Dan Stec was recently elected as our New York state senator. One of his first actions was to oppose election reforms. That appears to align with the national Republican voter suppression strategy. I wanted to know why Mr. Stec voted NO on the following bills, so I contacted his office weeks ago for a rationale — he didn’t respond.

¯ S1027 — Amend election law to expedite review and canvassing of absentee ballots.

¯ S1028 — Provide a secure website through which all New Yorkers can clearly and transparently track their own absentee ballot at every step of the process.

¯ S253 — To safeguard the constitutional right of absentee voters to have their votes counted when there are stray marks or writing on an absentee ballot as long as the express intent of the voter is unambiguous.

¯ S360 — No-excuse request for absentee ballots. Allows for any voter to request to vote by mail without declaring any reason for doing so.

¯ S492 — Authorizes the board of elections to establish absentee ballot drop boxes.

¯ S631 — Authorizes board of elections to receive absentee ballots earlier than 30 days before an election.

¯ S632 — Establishes an electronic application to request an absentee ballot.

Fortunately, the GOP can’t block popular legislation in New York anymore — all these bills passed the Senate. But why did Mr. Stec oppose them?

Frank Pagano

Jay