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Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Voters could be given the option to vote on removing NYC mayors from office
The Brief A Charter Revision Commission recommended that voters be given the opportunity to vote on a new removal process for New York City mayors. As of today, there are two ways a New York City mayor can be removed. "Staff recommend that the Commission consider creating a process for mayoral removal beyond those currently available to the Governor or Committee on Mayoral Inability." NEW YORK CITY - New Yorkers could soon have the power to remove sitting New York City mayors over misconduct. What we know A Charter Revision Commission, the NYC Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy, recommended that voters be given the opportunity to vote on a new removal process for New York City mayors. For context, Charter Revision Commissions are temporarily appointed government bodies that review the New York City Charter, which is essentially the framework for how the city is governed. These commissions can propose changes to the charter that are then voted upon by the public in a general election. Click to open this PDF in a new window. The Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy met on June 6 – one of the changes proposed is granting the New York City Council the ability to begin the process of removing a mayor. "Staff recommend that the Commission consider creating a process for mayoral removal beyond those currently available to the Governor or Committee on Mayoral Inability," reads one portion of the Preliminary Staff Report released. The process in mind would allow the Council to file mayoral misconduct charges with a supermajority vote (over two-thirds), then hold a hearing for the mayor in question to respond to said misconduct charges. The findings would be decided upon by another supermajority vote – after that point, it would be in the hands of the voters. A ballot question on whether to remove the sitting mayor would be presented to the voters – only a majority, not a supermajority, would be required to remove the mayor. Read the entire updated list of recommendations, including the aforementioned process, here. As of today, there are two ways a New York City mayor can be removed. The New York governor is able to serve a NYC mayor with charges, after which said mayor would have a chance to defend themself – the governor would then decide personally whether to remove them. The alternative is a bit more complicated. The City Charter cites that a special committee can be assembled to remove a mayor: an inability committee. This committee would comprise the corporation counsel, the city comptroller and the speaker of the City Council, as well as the borough president who has served the most consecutive years in office and the deputy mayor. Four of the five members would have to vote to remove the mayor. Who they are This specific Charter Revision Commission (CRC) was created by the City Council in November 2024. It has 17 commissioners, nine of which are appointed by the Council speaker; the remaining commissioners are appointed by the mayor, public advocate, comptroller and the five borough presidents. The panel will hold hearings about its suggested recommendations, then issue a final report later on. The backstory New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced earlier this year that she would not use her authority to remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office – the calls for Adams' removal came after New York prosecutors were directed by the U.S. Department of Justice to "dismiss" federal criminal charges that had been made against Adams Adams had been accused of accepting luxury travel perks and illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals in exchange for political favors, including helping Turkish officials resolve city approvals for a diplomatic building in Manhattan. The Source This article includes information from several New York City government offices and an updated list of recommendations made by the NYC Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NYC mayoral wannabe Jim Walden vows referendum to stop City Council handcuffing NYPD
Big Apple mayoral candidate Jim Walden, a former federal prosecutor and prominent lawyer, has vowed to fight the New York City Council from handcuffing the NYPD if he is elected. 'Politicians should generally stay out of the business of policing. The New York City Charter does not give the Council the power to micromanage police operations,' Walden, who is running as an independent, told The Post. 'As mayor, I will call a voter referendum to limit the City Council's power to micromanage NYPD operations. Public safety should be managed by capable experts, not by political winds.' However, to get the initiative on the ballot, Walden and supporters would have to collect roughly 50,000 voter signatures, which is only doable with vast resources. The voter referendum envisioned by Walen would: Extend the time of mayoral review for any proposed legislation related to police operations Require the City Council to hold public hearings with policing experts, including those called by the mayor, to fairly evaluate the legislation and its specific effects on policing Give the mayor the option to declare the bill damaging to policing and require a two-thirds majority for passage Require a supermajority of three-fourths to override any mayoral veto Over the years, the Council has passed bills over the mayor's objections dictating operations at the NYPD — most recently the How Many Stops Act, which requires officers to file reports on even minor interactions with members of the public. 'I am in favor of smart policing. I am in favor of clamping down on discriminatory practices by NYPD officers or other public servants. But I am against politicians—pandering to special interests—using limited examples of alleged police misconduct to increase bureaucracy on cops, taking them away from the critical mission of policing,' Walden said. 'Or, worse, telling them how to police.' Cosmetics billionaire Ronald Lauder successfully bankrolled a campaign in the 1990s to get voters to support a two-term limit for citywide officeholders and the Council. Walden would have to collect two or three times the required number of voter signatures for a ballot initiative to survive a legal challenge. 'It would be a herculean task. You would need a lot of resources,' said an election lawyer who requested anonymity. Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Adams recently announced that he will not run in a Democratic primary — and like Walden, will seek re-election in a long-shot bid under his own independent ballot line.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
How Hochul would go about removing Adams
ALBANY, New York — All eyes are now on Gov. Kathy Hochul as she weighs whether to remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office in the wake of the indictment against him, the Justice Department moving to drop those charges and Adams' subsequent steps to collaborate with the Trump administration on migrant policy. The governor has significant powers to remove local officials. But governors have rarely employed those powers in modern history. None have launched removal proceedings since Gov. Malcolm Wilson did after Schoharie County Sheriff John Goldswer forced inmates to work on a construction project at his house in 1974; no official has actually been removed since a series of investigations into Tammany Hall in 1932. There's little modern precedent for how an ouster of Adams would work in practice. But removals from the early 20th century provide a guide for what it might wind up looking like. Where are the governor's powers? The state constitution and state law contain a few brief sections mentioning the governor's powers to remove local officials. The most important language as it relates to the Adams situation comes from the New York City Charter: 'The mayor may be removed from office by the governor upon charges and after service upon him of a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard in his defense. Pending the preparation and disposition of charges, the governor may suspend the mayor for a period not exceeding thirty days.' What are the rules for removing a mayor? The governor's power to remove an official like a New York City mayor is theoretically limitless. State Supreme Court Justice Ellis Staley wrote in his ruling on a 1932 case challenging the extent of the removal powers that Franklin Roosevelt, 'as Governor of the state, is immune from interference by judicial process and free from judicial control in his performance of executive powers.' 'Courts have no power over his person and they cannot commit him for a disobedience of judicial process. For errors, if any, of law or of fact in the proceeding now pending before him, he is responsible, not to the courts, but to the people, and to his own conscience.' That being said, Staley detailed how the process should work. The mayor has a right to argue his defense, and he should be allowed to cross-examine any witnesses testifying against him under oath. There is also 'no limitation on the nature of the act for which the mayor may be removed.' But it was clear that the removal powers were intended only for a mayoral action that 'amounts to official misconduct or violation of public trust, or one that involves moral turpitude.' Staley said the only misdeeds that should be considered are those that happened under their current term — thus, alleged dealings with Turkish nationals that happened when Adams served as borough president wouldn't be considered during a removal proceeding against him. Staley wrote nearly a century ago, his decision was never appealed and the exact wording of some of the relevant statutory provisions has changed since then. Either Hochul or Adams could argue his conclusions aren't relevant. But Hochul has been clear she wants to avoid disruption as much as possible. It's therefore likely she would stick to ground rules similar to those Staley laid out. How does this work in practice? The best comparison to the Hochul-Adams situation was the one that prompted Staley's decision. Roosevelt, just two months away from being elected president, was forced to deal with the stigma of corruption in his home state's Democratic Party. Mayor Jimmy Walker had been accused of misdeeds such as awarding city contracts to people who were paying him. The governor conducted the trial himself. He served as judge, jury and prosecutor. Roosevelt swore in witnesses andquestioned them about the minutiae of records, all while weighing a decision that was his alone to make. With his ultimate fate becoming clear after two weeks of testimony in the Capitol's Red Room, Walker resigned and fled to Italy. How often has this actually been used? The governor's power to remove a mayor — and connected powers over officials like sheriffs and district attorneys that are laid out in the state constitution — have been utilized a handful of times but not recently. At least three borough presidents were ousted in the early 20th century. The same year as the Walker case, Roosevelt removed Manhattan Sheriff Thomas 'Tin Box' Farley — who earned his nickname by claiming the $361,000 deposit he made while earning a $15,000 salary was money contained in a box that he luckily stumbled upon. Since then, however, those powers have mostly been used as a threat against local officials. Oneida County elections officials departed after then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo eyed their removal following widespread problems in the 2020 race won by Rep. Claudia Tenney. Gov. Mario Cuomo used it as a cudgel to force Yonkers council members to stop blocking a housing desegregation plan. And Andrew Cuomo liked to remind Mayor Bill de Blasio that he could oust him if he wished. 'Technically the governor could remove a mayor,' Cuomo noted as he expressed his discontent with the mayor's handling of protests in 2020. Would this lead to a special election? Political observers have highlighted March 27 as a key date when considering Adams' potential departure. If Adams was out of office before then, the city's charter requires a special election within 90 days to replace him. That could provide a big boost in the late June Democratic primary to whichever candidate can win a race in which New Yorkers of all political parties can participate. But Hochul would have a bit of flexibility to avoid that scenario. She could suspend Adams for 30 days before removing him. It's thus plausible that she could announce on Feb. 25 that the mayor is temporarily stripped of power until hearings commence in mid-March, then wait to remove him until shortly after midnight on March 27.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What happens if NYC Mayor Adams resigns, is forced out: Line of succession explained
The Brief Adams could resign, though he remains adamant about staying in office, or be forced to step down by Hochul and what's known as an 'inability committee.' The committee would consist of the corporation counsel, Brad Lander, the City Council speaker (Adrienne Adams), a deputy mayor and the borough president with the longest consecutive tenure (currently Queens Borough President Donovan Richards), all of whom have called for Adams to consider stepping aside. If a new mayor replaced Adams through a special election, their term would be brief, as mayoral primaries are set for June 2025, with the election in November 2025. NEW YORK - New York Gov. Kathy Hochul held a meeting in Manhattan amid growing calls for embattled NYC Mayor Eric Adams to resign after four of his senior deputies stepped down. This is the latest fallout from the Justice Department's push to end his corruption case. Adams could resign, though he remains adamant about staying in office, or be forced to step down by Hochul and what's known as an 'inability committee,' after months of investigations and indictments within his administration. Several steps would play out if Adams were to leave office, as laid out by THE CITY. SKIP TO: NYC Voting | Inability commission | Who's running for mayor? Local perspective If Adams were to leave office on or after March 26, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams would take over until a new mayor is voted on at the Nov. 4, 2025 election, after also having run in the primary election. If Williams were somehow unable to act as mayor, then Brad Lander, the city's comptroller (who is running against Mayor Adams in 2025), would be next in line. Only two New York City mayors have resigned in history: Jimmy Walker in 1932 and William O'Dwyer in 1950. Since the deadline to fill the vacancy in this year's Nov. 5th General Election has passed, a special election will likely be held. If the vacancy occurs before March 26, a special election must be called for the first Tuesday at least 80 days after the vacancy, with some flexibility for the acting mayor to adjust the date, and it would be a nonpartisan primary using ranked choice voting. According to the New York City Charter, Gov. Kathy Hochul has the power to remove Adams from office "upon charges." Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo was pressured to remove then-mayor Bill de Blasio for his handling of the pandemic and his run for president, but he did not do so. Section 9. Removal of mayor:The mayor may be removed from office by the governor upon charges and after service upon him of a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard in his defense. Pending the preparation and disposition of charges, the governor may suspend the mayor for a period not exceeding thirty days. The likely option for forcing the mayor out would be what's called an "inability committee," which would seek to determine the mayor's inability to serve. Dig deeper According to THE CITY, the committee would consist of the corporation counsel, Brad Lander, the City Council speaker (Adrienne Adams), a deputy mayor chosen by the current mayor (in this case, Adams), and the borough president with the longest consecutive tenure (currently Queens Borough President Donovan Richards) all of whom have called for Adams to consider stepping aside. According to Section 8 of the Charter, the committee would vote on a City Council panel, which would then vote to "discharge the powers and duties of the office of mayor." If a new mayor replaced Adams through a special election, their term would be brief, as mayoral primaries are set for June 2025, with the election in November 2025. Williams and whoever wins the special election would still be eligible to run. Embattled, incumbent mayor Adams is currently facing an uphill political challenge as his approval rating heads downhill. Historically, no incumbent mayor has lost a primary election in nearly 50 years, adding pressure on Adams as voter discontent grows. It's unclear whether Adams would be able to run for mayor if he is removed by Gov. Hochul. According to the City Charter, the text does not explicitly state whether a mayor who has been removed from office is barred from running for election again. What we don't know It primarily outlines the process for removal, succession, and special elections in case of a vacancy but does not address eligibility for future elections. What you can do Here's a quick look at the key candidates vying for mayor in 2025: Brad Lander Jessica Ramos Whitney Tilson Zellnor Myrie Zohran Mamdani Scott Stringer Michael Blake Jim Walden Why you should care: In ranked choice voting, you can rank up to 5 candidates. First Round: If a candidate gets over 50%, they win. No Majority? The lowest-ranked candidate is eliminated, and their votes go to voters' next choices. Repeat: This continues until two candidates remain, and the one with the most votes wins. Results are final only after all ballots (including absentee) are counted. For the June 27 Primary, ranked-choice voting will be used for City Council races.
