Legislature Moving Primary Date Off of 9/11?

According to the State Board of Elections, the September primary is currently scheduled to be held on Tuesday, September 11 this year.  [The primary date is determined by Election Law § 8-100(1)(a), which provides that the fall primary “shall be held on the first Tuesday after the second Monday in September before each general election unless otherwise changed by an act of the legislature.”]

But legislation has been introduced in both the Assembly and Senate that could move the primary away from September 11^th.

Last Monday, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver introduced legislation (A.10112) that would move the September 2012 primaries (which are for state and local elections) to Thursday, September 13.

Last Friday, Senate Elections Committee Chair Tom O’Mara introduced an identical bill in the Senate (S.7418).

There is a recent precedent for changing the fall primary date away from 9/11.  In 2007 the primary would have fallen on 9/11 had the Governor and Legislature not agreed on legislation (Chapter 49 of 2007) that delayed the primary by one week (to September 18).

The proposal to move the primary to September 13 (rather one week later) may reflect concerns about the ability of local election boards to send out absentee ballots (especially for military and oversees voters) and get them back in time to be counted.