Operation of the Literacy Test for Voters in New York

Extract

The education department of the state of New York, which is charged with the administration of the literacy test law of 1923, has recently submitted a report on the workings of the measure from 1923 to 1929. The document furnishes some very illuminating evidence, not only on the operation of the literacy test for voters, but on other phases of political action.

These figures indicate a steady increase of interest in voting in the state of New York, if the presidential years are not included. Despite the peak applications of 1928, a larger number of new voters applied in the off-year 1929 than in the gubernatorial year 1926. The figures for 1928 are particularly significant. The Hoover-Smith campaign brought out a record number of non-voters who had never participated, and it must be recalled that these 163,299 persons had either become of age or had been naturalized since January 1, 1922. They do not include persons who were qualified but had never voted before the literacy test law became operative.