The Ploy To Convince Republicans To Switch Parties Is Rankling The GOP arrow The message scrawled across a mailer sent by Be Counted NYC. The effort by a political committee to have more voters register with the Democratic Party ahead of the June primary has irked Republicans who see the push as a cheap way of luring more moderate voices to the party. The effort is being spearheaded by Be Counted NYC (formerly NYC Votes, Inc.), a political committee launched by Lisa Blau, a Manhattan investor and the wife of Jeff Blau, CEO of The Related Companies. Critics have pointed out that the mailer is cleverly formatted to appear as though it came from the New York City Board of Elections.