So when Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Monday that he wanted the state’s byzantine election laws revamped and (gasp!) made more voter-friendly, there was applause — and apprehension.

[Here’s an in-depth look at the proposed changes.]

In his speech, Mr. Cuomo called for automatic voter registration, an ease on the restrictions to voting by mail, and an expansion in the number of days when people can vote. Thirty-eight other states already allow early voting. He even wants to make Election Day a state holiday.

“We’re very pleased,” Susan Lerner, executive director of the good-government group Common Cause, told The Times. But “the devil’s in the details,” she said.

Early voting needed to include “a minimum of two weekends, and some evening hours,” she said.

This would allow the most people to be able to get to the polls, she said: “Seniors, the young, communities that are often economically challenged, where people are working three or four jobs.”

Mr. Cuomo and his fellow Democrats will control the State Legislature starting next month, so something is likely to come of this, though some changes will require approval from voters.