What's happening
The bill allows affidavit ballots to be counted if cast at any polling place within the correct county, not just the correct election district.
Why it matters
Expands voter access and reduces ballot rejection. by ensuring that affidavit ballots cast at any polling place within the correct county are counted, even if the voter was at the wrong election district location.
Addresses common voter confusion and errors. many voters accidentally go to the wrong polling site; this change means their votes will still count for eligible races, minimizing disenfranchisement due to administrative mistakes.
Could impact close elections. by increasing the number of valid votes, particularly in counties with multiple polling places and high rates of provisional (affidavit) ballots.
Shifts election administration practices. local boards will need to adapt processes to identify and count eligible votes from affidavit ballots cast across various polling sites within the county, potentially increasing administrative workload but also promoting fairness.
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Who cares
Eligible voters at the wrong polling place
The bill would require their affidavit ballots to be counted if they appeared at a polling place in the correct county, even in the wrong election district.
County boards of elections
Boards would have to cast and canvass these affidavit ballots after determining that the voters were entitled to vote in the election.
Voting rights advocates
The bill would expand which affidavit ballots must be counted by replacing the correct-polling-place requirement with a correct-county requirement.
Headline styles
Count Affidavit Ballots Countywide
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to elections
- Referred to elections
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4074
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 2, 2017
Introduced by Sen. DILAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to counting of affidavit ballots
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 9-209 of the election law, as amended by chapter 308 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
(iii) If the board of elections determines that a person was entitled to vote at such election, the board shall cast and canvass such ballot if such board finds that the voter appeared at [the correct] a polling place in the correct county, regardless of the fact that the voter may have appeared in the incorrect election district.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09264-01-7
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the election law, in relation to counting of affidavit ballots
Purpose
To provide for the casting and counting of ballots of voters, otherwise eligible, when the voter appears at the wrong Election District but within the proper county.
Summary of provisions
Amends Section 9-209 sub 2(a) by adding a new subparagraph 3 to require The Board of Elections to cast and count such ballots.
Existing law
In Panio s C. V. Sunderland et al., _NY3d,_, the Court of Appeals held that, under existing law, such ballots should not be counted.
Justification
Inspectors are required to offer an affidavit ballot when the voter appears at the proper Election District but the name cannot be found in the poll record. If the inspectors offer an affidavit ballot to a voter who appears at the wrong Election District, this is an error of the Board of Elections employee. The voter reasonably assumes that his or her vote has been correctly cast. The voter should not be disenfranchised by an error made by the Board employee.
Legislative history
2013-2014: S.420: referred to elections 2015-2016: S.2296 referred to elections
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.