What's happening
The Voter Friendly Ballot Act reforms New York election laws to standardize, simplify, and clarify ballot design for voters.
Why it matters
Mandates clear, accessible ballot design. Requires use of sans serif fonts, prohibits all-capital letters, and sets minimum font sizes—measures that can reduce voter confusion and help those with vision or reading challenges.
Standardizes ballot instructions and layout. Establishes uniform, plain-language instructions for marking ballots, placement of voting ovals/squares, and the organization of candidate names and offices, which can minimize voter errors and ensure consistency across New York State.
Expands language access and ballot visibility. Requires ballots to be available in English and up to two additional languages where needed, and increases public access to sample ballots (including expanded timelines and online posting), aiding non-English speakers and improving transparency.
Removes party emblems and clarifies candidate affiliations. Eliminates party emblems from ballots and instead places party names in less prominent type near candidate names, potentially reducing visual clutter and unintentional bias in voter choices.
Improves accessibility and ballot testing oversight. Enhances procedures for ballot inspection by candidates and the public, and codifies standards for emergency ballots and absentee voting materials, aiming to make elections more reliable and fair for all voters—including those voting by mail or with disabilities.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Make Ballots Easier to Read
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 26
History
- Signed chap.411
- Delivered to governor
- Returned to senate
- Passed assembly
- Ordered to third reading cal.33
- Substituted for A2682A
- Referred to election law
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 40–20
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- Amended 2300a
Show 2 earlier actions
- 1st report cal.160
- Referred to elections
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Make Ballots Easier to Read
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Charles Lavine
Full text
19 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2300--A Cal. No. 160
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 23, 2019
Introduced by Sens. KAVANAGH, ADDABBO, HOYLMAN, KAMINSKY, PARKER, RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first report, amended on first report, ordered to a second report and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of second report
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to enacting the voter friendly ballot act; and to repeal section 7-108 of such law relating to the form of ballots
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "voter friendly ballot act".
§ 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 7-102 of the election law, as added by chapter 371 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
a. In the event that a candidate in a primary election believes that the name of another candidate for the same office or position at such election is sufficiently similar to his or hers so as to cause confusion among the voters, such candidate may, not later than five days after the last day to file the certificates or petitions of designation, file with the board of elections with which such certificates or petitions of designation are filed, a request that such board determine that such a sufficient similarity exists.
§ 3. Section 7-104 of the election law, as amended by chapter 165 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
§ 7-104. Ballots; form of[, voting machine]. 1. All ballots shall be printed and/or displayed in a format and arrangement, of such uniform size and style as will fit the ballot [frame], and shall be in as plain and clear a type or display as the space will reasonably permit, using only sans serif print fonts. Such type or display on the ballot shall
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02454-02-9
S. 2300--A 2
satisfy all requirements and standards set forth pursuant to the federal Help America Vote Act.
2. The names of parties or independent bodies which contain more than fifteen letters may, whenever limitations of space so require, be printed on the ballot in an abbreviated form. In printing the names of candidates whose full names contain more than fifteen letters, only the surname must be printed in full. The officer or board charged with the duty of [preparing the ballots] certifying the candidates for such office shall request each such candidate to indicate, in writing, the shortened form in which, subject to this restriction, his or her name shall be printed. If no such indication is received from such candidate within the time specified in the request, such officer or board shall make the necessary determination.
3. (a) The party name or other designation[, and a designating letter and number] shall be affixed to the name of each candidate, or, in case of presidential electors, to the names of the candidates for president and vice-president of such party.
(b) A column/row designating number may be affixed to the name of each candidate, or in the case of presidential electors, to the names of the candidates for president and vice-president of such party.
(c) The titles of offices may be arranged horizontally, with the names of candidates for an office and the space, slot or device for write-in [ballots] votes for such office arranged vertically under the title of the office, or the titles of offices may be arranged vertically, with the names of candidates for an office and the space, slot or device for write-in [ballots] votes for such office arranged horizontally opposite the title of the office.
[(c)] (d) Each office shall occupy as many columns or rows on the [machine] ballot as the number of candidates to be elected to that office, except where candidate placements due to cross endorsements require additional columns or rows.
4. (a) The names of all candidates nominated by any party or independent body for an office shall always appear in the row or column containing generally the names of candidates nominated by such party or independent body for other offices except as hereinafter provided.
(b) When the same person has been nominated for an office to be filled at the election by more than one party, the voting machine shall be so adjusted that his or her name shall appear in each row or column containing generally the names of candidates for other offices nominated by any such party.
(c) If such candidate has also been nominated by one or more independent bodies, his or her name shall appear only in each row or column containing generally the names of candidates for other offices nominated by any such party and the name of each such independent body shall appear in one such row or column to be designated by the candidate in a writing filed with the officer or board charged with the duty of [providing ballots] certifying the candidates for such office, or if such person shall fail to so designate, the names of such independent bodies shall appear in such row or column as such officer or board shall determine.
(d) If any person shall be nominated for any office by one party and two or more independent bodies his or her name shall appear on the [voting machine] ballot twice; once in the row or column containing generally the names of candidates for other offices nominated by such party, and once in the row or column containing generally the names of candidates nominated by the independent body designated by such person
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in a writing filed with the officer or board charged with the duty of [providing ballots] certifying the candidates for such office and in connection with the name of such person in such row or column shall appear the name of each independent body nominating him or her or, if such person shall fail to so designate, the name of such candidate and the names of such independent bodies shall appear in such row or column as such officer or board shall determine.
(e) If any person is nominated for any office only by more than one independent bodies, his or her name shall appear but once upon the machine in one such row or column to be designated by the candidate in a writing filed with the officer or board charged with the duty of providing ballots, or if the candidate shall fail to so designate, in the place designated by the officer or board charged with the duty of [providing ballots] certifying the candidates for such office, and in connection with his or her name there shall appear the name of each independent body nominating him or her, but, where the capacity of the [machine] ballot will permit, the name of such person shall not appear or be placed in a column or on a horizontal line with the names of persons nominated by a party for other offices.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision four of this section, the name of a person who is nominated for the office of governor, or state senator, or member of assembly, shall appear on the ballot as many times as there are parties or independent bodies nominating him or her, and there shall be a separate voting [and registering device] position at each place in which such name shall appear.
6. If any type of machine used in any county or city contains any feature approved by the state board of elections, the use of which is neither required nor prohibited by the provisions of this chapter, the board of elections may, by resolution, require that one or more of such features shall be used in such county. Thereafter all machines of such type used in such county or city shall be operated in conformity with any such resolution. Any such resolution may thereafter be rescinded by such board and after being so rescinded may be re-adopted. Once re-adopted by any board of elections, such a resolution may not be rescinded again by such board.
7. The ballot shall have printed upon it in black ink for each party or independent row, at the head of the column or the beginning of the row containing the names of candidates, [the image of a closed fist with index finger extended pointing to the party or independent row. In the same space, in black letters as large as the space will permit, shall be printed] the name of the party or independent body [and at the right of the fist and below the index finger shall be printed in black ink the emblem] and the designating [letters] letter of the row or column.
8. With respect to candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor of a party or independent body, ballots shall be printed so that the names of such candidates for both offices shall appear in the same row or column, with the name of the candidate for governor appearing first and the ballot shall be so adjusted that both offices are voted for jointly and have but one designating [letter or] number if such column/row designating numbers are utilized.
9. In those counties in which ballots are required by federal law, or otherwise, to be provided in a language other than English, there shall be versions of the ballot printed in English and in each of the additional languages required so that each version of the ballot shall contain English and no more than two other languages. The county board of elections in such counties shall instruct, in their poll worker
S. 2300--A 4
training and materials, the procedures to be followed to ensure that each voter receives a ballot with the appropriate language as determined by the state board.
10. Each ballot shall contain instructions for marking the ballot. The instructions shall be printed in line lengths no wider than five inches. Ballot instructions may be printed on the front or back of the ballot or on a separate sheet or card. If such instructions are not printed on the front of the ballot, there shall be printed on the ballot, in the largest size type practicable, the following legend: "See instructions on the other side" or "See instructions (insert where instructions are found)", whichever is appropriate.
11. The offices appearing on all ballots shall be listed in the customary order.
12. If two or more candidates are nominated for the same office for different terms, the term for which each is nominated shall be printed as a part of the title of the office.
13. The text for ballot instructions shall be substantially as follows, so that it accurately reflects the ballot layout:
INSTRUCTIONS
Mark the (insert "oval" or "square") to the left of the name of your choice. (Provide illustration of correctly-marked voting position here.) To vote for a candidate whose name is not printed on the ballot, (insert "mark the oval (or square) to the left of 'write-in' and print the name clearly" or "print the name clearly in the box labeled 'write-in'"), staying within the box. Any mark or writing outside the spaces provided for voting may void the entire ballot. The number of choices is listed for each contest. Do not mark the ballot for more candidates than allowed. If you do, your vote in that contest will not count. If you make a mistake, or want to change your vote, ask a poll worker for a new ballot.
14. The state board of elections shall provide line drawing illustrations to supplement these instructions. At a minimum, an illustration of the correct way to mark the ballot shall be provided, but nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the board in providing additional illustrations.
15. When a question or proposal is included on the ballot, instructions substantially like the following shall be included:
Instructions for Voting on Questions and Proposals
To vote on a question or proposal, mark the (insert "oval" or "square") to the (insert "left", "above" or "below") of your choice. If you make a mistake, or want to change your vote, ask a poll worker for a new ballot.
16. When a question or proposal appears on the back of the ballot, there shall appear on the front of the ballot words or a symbol indicating that the voter should turn over the ballot.
17. The voting oval or square shall be to the left of the name of the candidate.
18. All text, including the name of each candidate as provided in subdivision three of this section, shall be printed using standard capitalization in accordance with instructions provided by the state board of elections and shall not be printed using all capital letters.
S. 2300--A 5
19. The ballot shall use one font or font family with enough variations for all text needs.
20. "Vote for one" or "Vote for up to ......" (the blank space to be filled with the number of persons to be nominated for the office or elected to the position), as applicable, shall be printed immediately below each office title appearing on the ballot.
21. No party emblems shall be printed on the ballot.
22. The names of candidates for the same office shall appear on the same page and in the same column or columns or row or rows of that page of a printed ballot, and may not be separated by a perforation.
23. All text, including the title of each office and the name of each candidate, shall be printed flush left and shall not be centered on the ballot or in any column or row appearing on the ballot; provided however, in a multi-column or multi-row contest, the title and number of allowable selections to be made for each such office may be centered.
24. If used, shading shall be used consistently, so as to differentiate instructions from ballot section dividers and contest information.
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 enacting the voter friendly ballot act; and to repeal section 7-108 of such law relating to the form of ballots
Purpose
To create a ballot layout that is easy for voters to read and use.
Summary of provisions
Section one of the bill sets forth the short title as the "voter friend- ly ballot act".
Read the full memo (2,293 words)
Section two of the bill amends paragraph a of Subdivision 3 and para- graph b of Subdivision 4 of Section 7-102 of the election law to make the text gender inclusive.
Section three of the bill amends Section 7-104 of the election law, which, as amended, applies to the form of all ballots, as follows.
Subdivision 1 of Section 7-104 is amended to require use of sans serif type
Subdivision 2 of Section 7-104 is amended to make certain technical changes.
Subdivision 3 of Section 7-104 is amended to remove the requirement of affixing a designating letter and number on ballots for primary elections, provide that a designating number is optional, and to make certain other technical changes.
Subdivisions 4, 5, and 6 of Section 7-104 are amended to make certain technical changes.
Subdivision 7 of Section 7-104 is amended to remove the requirement that each row on the ballot have an image of a closed fist and extended finger.
Subdivision 8 of Section 7-104 is amended to make certain technical changes.
A new Subdivision 9 is added to Section 7-104 to require that in coun- ties where ballots are required to be provided in a language other than English, there shall be versions printed in English and in each of the additional languages required so that each version of the ballot shall contain English and no more than two other languages, and to provide for poll worker training related to this new provision. A new Subdivision 10 is added to Section 7-104 to specify certain requirements with respect to instructions for marking the ballot, including the format and place- ment of such instructions on the ballot or on a separate sheet or card.
New Subdivisions 11 and 12 are added to Section 7-104 to include requirements currently included in the election law in Subdivisions 1 and 2 of Section 7 108, which is otherwise repealed by section five of the bill.
A new Subdivision 13 is added to Section 7-104 to set forth the require- ments for the text for ballot instructions, clarifying and simplifying the text required under current law.
A new Subdivision 14 is added to Section 7-104 to require the state board of elections to provide line drawing illustrations to supplement the instructions.
A new Subdivision 15 is added to Section 7-104 to set forth the require- ments for the text for ballot instructions when the ballot includes voting for questions or proposals, clarifying and simplifying the text required under current law.
A new Subdivision 16 is added to Section 7-104 to require that when questions and proposals appear on the back of the ballot, the front of the ballot have words or a symbol indicating the voter should turn over the ballot.
New Subdivisions 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 are added to
Section 7-104 to set forth other specifications for the design and layout of the ballot, including requirements that:
-the voting oval or square shall be to the left of the name of the candidate;
-all text shall be printed using standard capitalization and not all capital letters;
-the ballot shall use one font or font family with enough variations for all text needs;
-"Vote for one" or "Vote for up to" shall be printed just below each office title;
-no party emblems shall be used;
-names of candidates for the same office shall appear on the same page and in the same column(s) or row(s);
-text shall be flush left and not centered on the ballot or in any column or row, except for multi-column or multi-row contests the title and number of allowable selections may be centered;
-any shading shall be used consistently, to differentiate instructions from ballot section dividers and contest information; and
-names of political parties or independent bodies nominating or desig- nating candidates shall be below or to the right of the name of the candidates, in less prominent type.
A new Subdivision 26 is added to Section 7-104 to require that all paper ballots of the same kind for the same polling place shall be identical.
A new Subdivision 27 is added to Section 7-104 to set forth other spec- ifications for the design and layout of the ballot, to be met to the extent practicable, including that:
-the instructions shall be in the upper left hand corner of the front of the ballot;
-the names of candidates shall be printed using a font size of not less than nine points; and
-when the instructions are on the ballot, there shall be a clear deline- ation between the instructions and the first office or ballot question or proposal, through the use of white space, illustration, shading, color, font size, or bold type.
Section four of the bill amends Section 7-106 of the election law, which, as amended, applies to ballots to be used with ballot scanners, as follows.
The section heading of Section 7-106 is amended to indicate that the provisions of the Section are applicable to the form of ballots used with ballot scanners, not just "election day paper ballots."
A new Subdivision 1 is added to Section 7-106 to specify that the provisions of Section 7-106 shall apply to all ballots to be used with ballot scanners, in addition to the ballot requirements provided for in Section 7-104.
The existing Subdivision 1 of Section 7-106 is renumbered as Subdivision 2 and amended to specify that ballots shall be clearly distinguishable from sample ballots by size, color, or other means. The existing Subdi- visions 2, 3, and 4 of Section 7-106 are renumbered as Subdivisions 3, 4, and 5, respectively and the new Subdivision 3 is amended to remove requirements that would be inconsistent with Section 7-104 as amended by section three of the bill. The existing Subdivisions 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of Section 7-106 are deleted, as the provisions of these Subdivi- sions are replaced by the provisions of Section 7-104 as amended by section three of the bill.
Section five of the bill repeals Section 7-108 of the election law, which relates to certain specifications regarding ballots that are replaced by the provisions of Section 7-104 as amended by section three of the bill.
Section six of the bill amends Section 7-110 of the election law, related to additional requirements applicable to ballots for ballot proposals, to permit such proposals to appear on a separate sheet or card and to remove references to "voting levers," since machines for such levers are no longer used for elections to which the provisions of this section apply.
Section seven of the bill amends Section 7-114 of the election law, which applies additional requirements to the form of ballots for primary elections, to make the provisions of this section consistent with those of Section 7-104 as amended by section three of the bill, to eliminate certain provisions that are replaced by the provisions of Section 7-104 as amended, and to make other technical changes.
Section eight of the bill amends Section 7-116 of the election law, related to the order of names on ballots, in the following ways. Subdi- vision 2 of Section 7-116 is amended to make certain technical changes and to shorten the time in which candidates nominated at a convention may demand that ballot order be determined by lot, from one week to three business days.
Subdivision 3 of Section 7-116 is amended to make certain technical changes.
Subdivision 4 of Section 7-116 is amended to specify that if a vacancy in a designation or nomination be filled after the order in which the names of candidates is determined, the name of the candidate designated or nominated to fill the vacancy shall be printed in the place deter- mined for the original candidate only to the extent practicable.
Subdivision 6 of Section 7-116 is amended to eliminate provisions that currently apply to primary elections in the City of New York related to rotating the names of candidates, and to add new provisions as follows.
A new paragraph (a) of Subdivision 6 of Section 7-116 addresses cases where names are added to or removed from the ballot by court order when it is too late to apply the otherwise applicable specifications as to the order of candidates' names. A new paragraph (b) of Subdivision 6 of Section 7-116 specifies that the titles, public offices, or party posi- tions and the names of the candidates shall appear on the ballot imme- diately adjacent to one another, with no blank spaces separating them, except where a contest or candidate is removed from the ballot by court order too late to comply with this specification.
Section nine of the bill amends Section 7-118 of the election law, relating to sample ballots, by dividing the Section into subdivisions and providing as follows.
Subdivision 1 of Section 7-118 is amended to require sample ballots to be distinguishable from the ballot by size, color, or other means.
Subdivision 3 allows the boards of elections to satisfy the requirement that they publicize a sample ballot by publishing one online. Subdivi- sion 4 allows the boards of elections to satisfy the requirement of sending a sample ballot to high schools by publishing such a sample ballot online.
Section ten of the bill amends Section 7-120 of the election law, relat- ing to emergency ballots, to make certain technical changes.
Section eleven of the bill amends Section 7-122 of the election law, relating to ballots for absentee voters, by:
-specifying that the provisions of other sections of this chapter shall apply to absentee ballots except to the extent inconsistent with Section 7-122;
-simplifying the instructions for absentee ballots;
-deleting existing provisions of Section 7-122 that are replaced by the provisions of Section 7-104 and Section 7-106 as amended by sections three and four of the bill, respectively;
-requiring three envelopes for each absentee ballot issued by mail: the inner affirmation envelope for the ballot, outer envelope addressed to voter, and mailing envelope addressed to the board of elections; and -making other technical changes.
Section twelve of the bill amends Section 7-123 of the election law, relating to military voters, to require three envelopes for each mili- tary absentee ballot issued by mail: the inner affirmation envelope for the ballot, outer envelope addressed to voter, and mailing envelope addressed to the board of elections.
Section thirteen of the bill amends Section 7-124 of the election law, relating to special federal voters, to require three envelopes for each special federal absentee ballot issued by mail: the inner affirmation envelope for the ballot, outer envelope addressed to voter, and mailing envelope addressed to the board of elections.
Section fourteen of the bill amends Section 7-125 of the election law, relating to special presidential voters, to require three envelopes for each special presidential absentee ballot issued by mail: the inner affirmation envelope for the ballot, outer envelope addressed to voter, and mailing envelope addressed to the board of elections.
Section fifteen of the bill amends Section 7-128 of the election law as follows.
Subdivision one of Section 7-128 is amended to expand the time for public inspection of sample ballots from 5 to 28 days, and to expand the time for inspection of official ballots from 4 to 14 days.
Subdivision two of Section 7-128 is amended to expand the time for candidates on a ballot to inspect the ballot from 2 to 14 days.
A new Subdivision 3 is added to Section 7-128 to require that candidates be given written notice of the time and place they may inspect the voting machines or systems to be used for the election and to permit candidates or their representatives to view the conduct of the logic and accuracy testing required to be performed on such voting machines or systems, not less than 15 days before the election.
Section sixteen of the bill amends Section 7-130 of the election law to remove the requirement that party emblems be contained on the ballot labels for ballots to be examined by voters prior to the election.
Section seventeen of the bill sets forth the effective date.
Justification
A ballot that is clear and simple to read makes voting easier and leads to more accurate voting. In recent elections and going back many years, New York voters have been confronted with a ballot that was cluttered and difficult to read.
The Voter Friendly Ballot Act will provide a remedy for New York's hard to read ballot by setting forth specifications that will create a ballot layout that is straightforward. Simultaneously, it provides Boards of Election with the flexibility to ensure good ballot design, regardless of the particular limits of their voting technology, or the number of contests and candidates that must be placed on the ballot in any partic- ular election.
Fiscal impact on the state
Minimal.
Fiscal impact on localities
Minimal.
Impact on regulation of businesses and individuals
None.
Impact on fines, imprisonment, forfeiture of rights, or other penal sanctions
None.
Legislative history
2018:S7538A- RECOMMITTED TO ELECTIONS 2017:A3379A- passed assembly 2016:A3389B- passed assembly 2015:A3389 -passed assembly
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to ballots to be used for elections occurring on or after the first day of August next succeeding the year in which it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.