Commissioner in a Car

Commissioner in a Car: Village elections are coming up but is anyone running?

Today I talk about the village elections happening on Wednesday March 18, 2026. Three villages, Manlius, Marcellus, and Minoa are holding their village elections this year. Why on a Wednesday? Why in March? Why do they have different polling hours? Why do villages get to choose their election days and how can it be changed? The answer to those questions and more in this week's episode. Enjoy.

Commissioner in a Car: Elections Don't Need a SAVE

This week's episodes focuses on the Save America ACT and what a disaster it would be for NY Elections. I go through it along with the MEGA proposals and possible executive orders as well as address the suspect constitutionality of it all. Enjoy,

Commissioner in a Car: Petition Season Begins.

This week's episode I talk about the upcoming start of the Designating petition period on Tuesday. I go over how we use designating petitions to get on the ballot, how they create primaries, and what goes into determining minimum signatures. Enjoy.

Commissioner in a Car: Conventions and Desisignations

In this week's episode I explain the difference between State Conventions and County Designations. The state has direct ballot access while county designees still have to get petitions. This is the first step in determining the ballot each year so I take some time to go over it. Enjoy.

My Testimony to the NYS Legislature Local Government Budget hearing (2/11/26)

Each year as Democratic Caucus Chair I travel to Albany to give oral testimony on the Governor's proposed executive budget. NYSECA is asking for $35 million for aid to locality funding to support county Board of Elections. Find the full 10 hour day of testimony here: https://www.nysenate.gov/calendar/public-hearings/february-11-2026/joint-legislative-public-hearing-2026-executive-budget Find my written testimony here: https://dustinczarny.com/2026/02/15/my-testimony-to-the-nys-legislature-local-government-budget-hearing-2-11-26/