State Sen. George Borrello is starting the 2026 legislative session with a bang.

During debate over legislation (S.8646) that would protect current and former election officers from intimidation and other forms of harassment. The proposal is sponsored by Sen. Kristen Gonzalez, D-New York City, would create a new civil cause of action against intimidation of an election officer while creating a new misdemeanor crime of doxxing an election officer.

“There are 40 states that have similar legislation that have felt the need in the last, especially five, going on six years, to protect their election officers. Because of the increased threats I mentioned earlier, we have seen a wave of retirements, and election officers resigning from their positions, and we want to make it clear here in New York, that if you want to be a part of our democratic process, that we have your back. You should not come to work and feel that your life will be threatened, that those around you will be targeted and in this digital age where we have social media, it is important to meet the moment and create a standard for how the information is distributed online and that’s exactly what this bill does.”

The bill was approved 13-2 on Monday by the Senate Rules Committee in a party line vote before full Senate approval Monday, 40-19, also in a party line vote. Gonzalez cited in her legislative justification that a 2024 report by the Brennan Center, more than one-third of local election officials across the country have experienced threats, harassment, or abuse. Close to seventy percent of those officials say that those threats have increased since 2020.

During floor debate, Sen. James Skoufis, D-Cornwall, pointed a finger at President Donald Trump and the aftermath of the 2020 election. He then steered his comments toward Senate Republicans who have consistently called for trust in the electoral system while advocating for limits on mail-in voting, mobile voting and voter identification.

“So when you talk about people wanting a voting system they can trust – that was almost verbatim what we just heard from our colleagues across the aisle – this has nothing to do with vacation homes or nothing to do with these other things that we’re talking about. The reason why some people don’t trust electoral outcomes is because of that election and what transpired after it. … Get trust back in our election system by standing up and denouncing those lies. In the meantime we have to protect our workers who are administering these elections and facing these lies and facing the threat that comes from them.”

Borrello shot back at Skoufis by citing a poll in which one in four self-identified liberals said they believe it’s OK to use violence to justify a political cause.

“One in four people are willing to tell a stranger on the phone that they are willing to commit acts of violence to support their political cause, so don’t sit here and preach to me about what’s going on when one in four people, self-identified liberals, think it is OK to commit acts of violence,” Borrello said. “We’ve seen those acts of violence. We see them every day on TV. I will not be lectured to about this. This is about doing the right thing at the right time. It has nothing to do with grandstanding. I’m voting no.”

The debate came in the midst of several election bills, including:

– S.324, the Democracy Preservation Act, which prohibits contributions by foreign-influenced business entities;

– S.568, which establishes portable polling locations for early voting;

– S. 1035, which would require mandatory training curriculum for Board of Elections employees;

– S.1036, which allows a voter to register to vote at any residence to which the voter maintains a continuous connection with an intent to remain;

– S.1085, which prohibits deceptive practices and the suppression of voters, and increases penalties for violations of the elective franchise;

– S.8604, which moves the date of the presidential primary to the first Tuesday in March.