Lawyers made their case in court for the first time Tuesday six months after the law took effect.
allow those who have resided in the city for more than 30 days and are authorized to live and work here to register to vote in local elections.when they would first be able to cast a ballot in a city election.
Plaintiffs led by Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella, a Republican endorsed by Donald Trump, filed suitto throw out the law arguing it violated the state constitution and state election law. In filings submitted ahead of Tuesday’s hearing in Richmond County State Supreme Court, attorneys argued among other things that state law required people to be citizens to cast a vote.
The city Law Department, in its defense of City Hall, filed a memorandum arguing that the state constitution enables New York City to enact laws to manage its municipal elections and define who is qualified to participate in those elections. In April, a group of nine additional defendants, all city residents who would be granted voting rights under the law, joined the lawsuit as intervenors represented by LatinoJustice PRLDEF, formerly known as the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, a nonprofit civil rights organization.Ahead of the hearing Tuesday, supporters of the law rallied on the steps of the courthouse in Staten Island.