AOC launches effort to reactivate tens of thousands of inactive New York City voters
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is urging her activist supporters to help locate as many as 80,000 “inactive” city voters and encourage them to participate in upcoming elections that could benefit Democratic candidates.
A voter’s registration is automatically designated inactive if they do not vote in two consecutive federal elections or fail to respond to a Board of Elections notice concerning a change of address.
“These voters are at risk of being purged from the voter file. In New York City alone, there are over 80,000 inactive voters,” Team AOC said in a message to supporters about the New York City edition of its “Project Reactivation” program.
However, the city Board of Elections said its rolls include 446,479 voters listed as inactive.
“This does not prevent you from voting. Your name will still appear in the poll pads and you could still vote on the machines,” said BOE spokesman Vincent Ignizio.
“But, if you are in inactive status and you miss two successive federal elections, the law says that you are then removed from the rolls and you would have to re-register to vote.”
AOC’s campaign staff is scheduled to hold a training session Monday focused on mobilizing “the most unlikely voters.”
“The stakes are too damn high,” the AOC email blast, obtained by the Post, said. “Every Democrat’s vote must be counted, so we are calling on you to join us for a training in New York City on how YOU can help inactive voters protect their right to vote and update their registration status from inactive to active.”
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“The pathway to win back the House is increasingly proving to be through New York State.”
The initiative comes as Ocasio-Cortez appears to be exploring a potential 2028 campaign for president or the US Senate. She recently began an upstate tour that included stops in Buffalo, Syracuse, Binghamton and Ithaca.
Her upstate tour also included the launch of the “inactive voter training” program.
Ocasio-Cortez, who represents parts of Queens and The Bronx, is now turning her attention to inactive voters in her home territory through Project Reactivation NYC.
Voting experts cautioned that the effort could face significant challenges because many, and possibly most, people on the inactive list no longer live locally—or are deceased.
“In most cases they moved or they died,” said Jerry Skurnik, a senior consultant with Engage Voters US, which maintains voter databases and sells them to clients.
Skurnik said Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign will probably succeed in reengaging only a small number of voters.
He added that many candidates do not purchase inactive voter lists because they can be unreliable, difficult to reach and not worth the expense.
Ignizio said the number of inactive voters generally remains stable from year to year. Some voters are removed after officials receive evidence that they moved or died, while others are added to the inactive list.
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