In the News…

Dan Janison, December 19, 2005

MARKED ABSENT.

In an updated report called "Democracy Takes A Nap: Party Politics in New York's Five Boroughs," the organization Grassroots Initiative last week issued a stunning statistic.

More than 14,000 party committee seats are vacant due to a shortage of candidates, the group found. This report comes a month after two of every three registered voters in the city sat out the mayoral race - part of a long-term decline in turnout.

"It's no surprise that the Republican and Democratic Party are not connecting with everyday New Yorkers. They simply aren't present," said Grassroots Initiative President Jeff S. Merritt, the report's author.