How The Privileged Political Class Protects Its Intrests: The History of Scarsdale’s Non-Partisan Election System

In 1911, after a particularly bitter campaign and election for Town Supervisor, the leaders of the Scarsdale Town Republican Party and Democratic Party committees agreed to jointly choose a single candidate for any open town government position who would best serve the interests of the entire Village and whom both parties would endorse.

This system worked fairly well until 1930, when the Party committees were unable to agree on a single candidate for an open Village Trustee position. As a result, the Party committees and the Scarsdale Town Club agreed to form a new committee, unaffiliated with either Party, “consisting of representative citizens … to select candidates,” and Scarsdale’s first nonpartisan election system was established. That fall, the Scarsdale Town Club and the Woman’s Club co-drafted the first version of the Non-Partisan Resolution (the “Resolution”), a document that outlines the consensus method to be followed in nominating Village officials. The original Resolution was adopted on December 11, 1930 and, as a living document, has been amended 40 times to date. Some of the major changes to Scarsdale’s nonpartisan election system since its inception include:

• replacing polling in each election unit with one central polling location;

• redrawing election unit lines according to elementary school district boundaries;

• establishing a public procedure for amending the Resolution;

• establishing a system whereby nominees for village and town offices are given the opportunity to make oral presentations and provide information to the CNC members relating to the nominee’s experience and qualifications for office, not addressing specific issues;

• providing for and designing procedures for mail-in ballots; and

• ensuring that candidates agree to be considered as potential nominees.

In addition, over the years, responsibility for overseeing the CNC election process and amending the Resolution has shifted from a committee comprised solely of Scarsdale Town Club members to a Procedure Committee that includes outgoing elected members of the CNC, members appointed by the Town and Village Civic Club, and representatives from the Scarsdale Neighborhood Association Presidents (“SNAP”). For a time, the League also appointed representatives to the Procedure Committee and CNC; however, it withdrew from the process when it recognized its participation violated the League’s mission to “not endorse or oppose political candidates or parties at any level of government.”

The current Resolution can be found at www.scarsdaleprodecurecommittee.org

Current Framework of Scarsdale Village Election System and Role of the TVCC

Overview

The goal of Scarsdale’s nonpartisan system has always been to select highly qualified candidates in a way that seeks to avoid an adversarial political campaign. Currently, village residents vote in contested elections for neighborhood representatives to serve on the CNC. The CNC meets in closed sessions to nominate nonpartisan candidates who run on a slate of candidates through the Scarsdale Citizens’ Party.

The Procedure Committee

The Resolution governs the nomination of a slate of candidates for Scarsdale village offices. From 1930-1974 the Scarsdale Town Club, through its Village Board Nominating Committee, had responsibility for executing the provisions of the Resolution and for amending the document. However, in 1974, The Resolution was amended to create an independent Procedure Committee, charged with overseeing the Resolution, proposing amendments to the Resolution, and administering the procedure for the election of members to the CNC. Today, the Procedure Committee is comprised of ten elected members of the CNC who have completed their three-year terms, ten appointed members from the Town and Village Civic Club (“TVCC”), and two representatives from the Scarsdale Neighborhood Association Presidents (“SNAP”). The President of the TVCC appoints a vice-chair who ultimately succeeds to chair the Procedure Committee. Appointees by the TVCC to the Procedure Committee need not be members of the TVCC.

The Procedure Committee’s expenses (such as the brochure, mailings, meeting rooms, expenses in connection with the CNC election itself, etc.) are financed by nondeductible contributions from the general public, solicited by the Procedure Committee. However, when solicitations have fallen short, the TVCC has made loans for or underwritten Procedure Committee expenses. There is no financing mechanism or provision included in the Resolution.

Election to the CNC

Scarsdale qualified voters who have resided in the village for at least two years are eligible to run for the CNC. Elections are held in early November and ordinarily two people are elected from each nonpartisan unit (i.e., elementary school district) to serve a three-year term on the CNC. Furthermore, any proposed amendments to the Resolution are voted upon at this time.

Responsibilities of the CNC

The CNC is responsible for soliciting potential nominees and nominating one candidate for each village office vacancy (Mayor, Trustee and Village Justice). These candidates run as a slate of the Citizens’ Non-Partisan Party in the March village elections and, if elected, take office at the beginning of April. The CNC is comprised of 30 voting members and four nonvoting members. The nonvoting members are the President and the Vice-President of the TVCC, one representative designated by the TVCC (in the past two years, this representative has been the vice-chair of the Procedure Committee), and one representative designated by the Chair of SNAP. The President of the TVCC serves as the Chairperson of the CNC. Nonvoting members are not permitted to offer any information or opinions regarding possible nominees.

At its first organizational meeting, the CNC adopts routine Rules of Procedure to govern its deliberations, which should be consistent with the purpose and provisions of the Resolution. Any other non-routine procedural changes must be made through a formal amendment of the Resolution. Questions on compliance with the Rules of Procedure are ruled on by the Chairperson but can be overruled by a two-thirds vote of the voting members present. According to the Resolution, in considering potential candidates:

• The CNC seeks to primarily consider the fitness of the person being interviewed for the particular office.

• The CNC conducts due diligence on all potential nominees.

• The CNC gives potential nominees an opportunity to make oral presentations to the CNC in closed, confidential sessions. Questions may only relate to the potential nominees’ experience and qualifications and NOT to any specific issues.

• Potential Nominees may not be voted upon at the same meeting at which they were nominated.

After the CNC announces its slate of nominees through the Scarsdale Citizens’ NonPartisan Party, the nominations come under the purview of NYS election law. As such, the Scarsdale Citizens’ Non-Partisan Party is required to gather signatures of registered voters on an independent nominating petition in compliance with the timetable set forth by law. Similarly, under New York State election law, any other qualified person can file a signed petition with the Village Clerk to run for a village position in the March election, thereby contesting one or all of the CNC slate of nominees.

Campaign Committee The Campaign Committee is an independent body that is neither governed by nor included in the Resolution. It assumes responsibility for all publicity pertaining to the Citizens’ Party’s slate of nominees. This includes advertising, producing brochures, and organizing a phone campaign whether or not the election is contested, as well as incidental expenses incurred by the CNC (mostly room fees and, occasionally, refreshments). Traditionally, the Vice President of the TVCC chairs the campaign committee. All other committee members are community volunteers with a variety of civic interests and affiliations. Campaign Committee expenses are financed by non-deductible contributions from the general public and are solicited by the Campaign Committee. Pursuant to state election law, the Campaign Committee is also required to file a State of New York Board of Elections Disclosure Statement with the village clerk.

The Role of the TVCC

The role of the TVCC in Scarsdale’s nonpartisan election system has evolved over the last 80 years. As mentioned above, Scarsdale’s nonpartisan system was launched in 1930 by the Town Club, which became the TVCC in 1990 through a merger with the Village Club (the name was officially changed to the Town and Village Civic Club). From 1930-1974 the Town Club, along with the Scarsdale Woman’s Club, had complete control over the nonpartisan system. In fact, the Citizens’ Non-Partisan System was embedded in a standing committee of the Town Club.

In 1974, the nonpartisan system’s Procedure Committee separated from the Town Club and became an independent body. However, the Town Club still appointed the chair, vice chair and many members to the Procedure Committee as well as the chair and vice chair to the CNC.

Precipitated by declining membership and the need to establish alternative sources of funding, the TVCC in 2003 split into two separate organizations with distinct IRS designations: the Forum, a 501(c)(3) entity and the TVCC, a 501(c)(4) entity. As a 501(c)(3) organization, the Forum could solicit tax-deductible contributions. Although the Forum assumed most of the functions of the TVCC, it would now be mostly restricted from engaging in political activities. Both the Forum and TVCC are prohibited from the endorsement of candidates. Structurally, all members of the Forum became de facto members of the TVCC, and officers and directors were the same for both entities. Currently, this is the organizational structure that exists.

A flow chart of the structural relationship between the Scarsdale Forum and the TVCC is included as Appendix 8. The following observations can be made about the TVCC’s role in Scarsdale’s nonpartisan system today:

• Until 2003, the TVCC was a civic organization whose mission was to involve itself in public matters, study issues and report findings, along with recommendations to the town, schools and other public entities. Today, the Forum has assumed these organizational goals; similar to the pre-2003 TVCC, the Forum seeks to educate the Scarsdale community through its reports, offering both majority and minority opinions on a variety of topics.

• TVCC officers continue to hold key leadership positions on the CNC, and the TVCC still appoints the leadership and 30 percent of the voting members of the Procedure Committee. The Scarsdale nonpartisan election system thus remains connected to an organization that is comprised of the same leadership and membership as the Forum – an organization that takes positions on issues affecting Scarsdale residents.

• The TVCC has financial ties to the Procedure Committee, although, in recent years, the Procedure Committee has been more proactive in raising funds independently.