The NY political machines don't like high voter turnout. They dislike voters surprising or inconveniencing them. Voters are basically a nuisance. Absentee voting is also intensely disliked. You need to sign an affidavit that you are either bed ridden, or will not be in your home county on voting day, and if on voting day, at any time, you are seen in the county, your vote can be challenged. And that in fact has happened. In Hudson, it has been known for folks to collect the names of those who have received absentee ballots, and then stake out their homes on election day, to see if they are anywhere around. And absentee votes are not counted until days after the election, so to insure that there is plenty of time to challenge those ballots. In Hudson, we have an alderman election that will turn on absentee ballots (these mostly by those claiming there are bed ridden in a nursing home), who alas may not be voting in the right ward, with one of the machines wanting to keep it that way. Fun stuff!
