This is part of "Election Explained", a series in our Election 2020 coverage where we go behind the scenes of what's going on with the crucial decisions voters are making; we debunk myths, explore the concepts in the current conversation, and make sure that civic engagement is understandable to youth.
Our Election 2020 coverage includes the federal presidential and congressional election as well as the New York State Senate and State Assembly election and the school student government election.
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(MOUNT VERNON, N.Y. / The Journal) — Across Westchester County and nationwide, there has been record turnout for both early voting and for absentee voting. This has been the first time in which absentee voting (ballots sent through the mail, filled out, and delivered back to elections officials via the mail or drop-boxes) will play a big factor into final results due to the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic as well as the first time early voting has been done for a presidential election in New York State. There are many local, regional, state, and national races to watch for in this election, but Mount Vernon residents also have multiple decisions to make too.
On the ballot this year are four propositions put in front of voters for revisions to the City Charter. The Charter is the official law throughout Mount Vernon and has existed since 1922. These propositions were the development of talks from a City Commission tasked with revising the document and this isn't the first time these were brought up. According to Jon Bandler of The Journal News & lohud, the Commission initially had 12 different ideas before settling on the four propositions and that the Commission failed to comply with filing requirements with the Westchester County Board of Elections last year for the propositions to appear on the 2019 ballot. However, after the Commission correct went through the filing process with municipal and county officials, those propositions will appear on this year's ballot.
So, what is a ballot proposition?
A ballot proposition is a "YES" or "NO" question of approval decided by election voters, which is asked by appearing on their election ballot.
The Four Ballot Propositions for Mount Vernon, NY City Charter Revision:
• PROPOSITION 1: The City Council must adopt and fund a Comprehensive Plan for the city's economic development and growth every 10 years.
• PROPOSITION 2: The finances of the entire municipal government as well as of specific city agencies will undergo independent audits at the end of the fiscal year by an outside certified public accounting firm. The same firm will not do the audits for more than five years.
• PROPOSITION 3: The City Comptroller (financial officer) must issue and release quarterly reports of municipal finances and specific city agencies as well as on the city's fiscal condition compared to the annual municipal budget.
• PROPOSITION 4: The appointment of a permanent, municipally-funded City Commission made of 15 resident members to review the City Charter at least once every 10 years.
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For more information and real-time updates on Election 2020, follow us on Twitter @TheJournal_MVSA.
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