Career
He was appointed in December 2005. Prior to that, he served as the Democratic commissioner from Manhattan on the New York City Board of Elections from 1993 to 2005. Kellner was one of the first proponents of a voter verifiable paper audit trail for electronic voting machines.
He was the leader of the opposition to New York City’s contract to purchase unverifiable direct recording electronic voting machines.
Kellner received considerable attention in 1986 when he revived New York’s Bawdy House Law, first enacted in 1840, and used it as a device where neighbors could seek to evict drug dealers. His use of this overlooked law for that purpose was quickly copied by district attorneys and housing authorities throughout the country.
