To the Editor:

Voter registrations are changing quickly. Just five years ago, the Republican Party registration outnumbered the no-party registration by 250,000. But in five short years, the no-party registrations have gone way up and now outnumber the Republicans. The Democratic registration lost ground, too.

This is a significant change.

What has not changed are the requirements for a no-party candidate to be on the ballot – an independent candidate must secure three times more petition signatures than a Democrat or Republican. So, although voter preferences are changing, evident by registration trends, the requirements to be on the ballot remain the same.

This trend is a signal to our political leaders that changes are needed to ensure candidates, no matter the party, get a fair shot at being on the ballot. Changes made in other states, such as open primaries, ranked-choice voting and parity of signature requirements to be on the ballot, should all be considered.

I am running to represent the 122nd Assembly District and will be on the ballot as a Democrat, but that is not enough. My goal is to represent everyone and to include as many people in the process before election day, so I will be passing an independent nominating petition as well – referred to as “Party for a Day.” This petition is often used by no-party candidates. The name of my party for the election is Common Sense.

We need action on common sense solutions that address the problems of our generation, and in order to succeed we need more people engaged in the political process.

Dan Buttermann, Oneonta

By martha

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