Assemblyman Ken Blankenship (R-117) introduced Assembly bill A3312 on February 2, 2023. This is the same as Assembly bill A8683 from the last session itnroduced by former Assemblyman John Salka.
The co-sponsors of this bill are Joe Angelino (R-121), Joe DeStefano(R-3), Brian D. Miller (R-112), and Chris Tague (R-102). The bill has been referred to the Election law Committee.
This bill would reduce ballot access thresholds back to pre-COVID numbers. Currently, a new party needs 45,000 signatures to get a statewide candidate on the ballot, up from the old requirement of 15,000. Additionally, if such an independent body puts a candidate on the ballot, they need 130,000 votes or 2%, whichever is higher, in the general election to obtain recognized party status.
The Libertarian Party of New York achieved recognized party status after the 2018 election when Larry Sharpe received over 95,000 votes. However, when the ballot access thresholds were increased, The Libertarian Party Presdiential candidate Jo Jorgensen received over 60,000 votes in New York. This was enough over for old thresholds, but it was not enough, and so the Libertarian Party, along with every other third party, lost ballot access. Only the Republican Party and Democratic Party remained recognized parties along with their pawn parties (Conservative and Working Families).
This new bill has the same co-sponsors as the bill from the last term, with the exception of former Assemblyman John Salka, who is no longer in office. I urge everyone to reach out to their representatives in the New York State Legislature and urge they support this bill for voter choice.
You can view more details about the bill here: www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/A3312