What's happening
This bill strengthens protections against illegal voter purging by requiring documentation and procedures for voter challenges in New York elections.
Why it matters
Increases transparency and accountability for voter challenges. by requiring anyone (other than election officers) who sends mail that could be used to challenge a voter’s registration to file detailed documentation—including names and addresses of recipients—with the State Board of Elections, reducing the risk of anonymous or coordinated efforts to disenfranchise voters.
Standardizes and documents the process for challenging a voter's eligibility. by introducing a required “challenge affidavit.” Challengers must provide their identity, employer, reasons for the challenge, and specific supporting facts under oath, which aims to deter frivolous or baseless challenges and ensures there is a paper trail for each challenge.
Protects voters’ sensitive information and limits misuse. by prohibiting the retention or sharing of citizenship status information except as required by law, and explicitly clarifying that failure to certify citizenship on election day is considered an innocent mistake—not an attempt to illegally register—which helps guard against intimidation or accidental disenfranchisement.
Strengthens legal consequences for improper voter challenges or tampering. by making it a misdemeanor to willfully lose, alter, or destroy challenge affidavits or reports, and for making false statements in these documents, providing a deterrent against fraud and abuse in the voter challenge process.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Stop Illegal Voter Purges
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 26
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to elections
- Committed to rules
- Amended on third reading 2301b
- Amended on third reading 2301a
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.371
- 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.
Stop Illegal Voter Purges
In Assembly Committee · Election Law · Sponsor Latrice Walker
Full text
4 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2301--B Cal. No. 371
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 23, 2019
Introduced by Sen. KAVANAGH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading -- again amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to providing protections against illegal voter purging
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 4-117 of the election law is amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
4. Any person, other than an election officer, who pays for, mails or causes to be mailed, any mail, where such person knows or reasonably should know that such mail: (a) is intended to be delivered to a registered voter or voter registration applicant; and (b) may be used by a challenger, other than an election officer, to challenge the qualifications of a voter, shall file with the state board of elections within two business days of such mailing, a duplicate copy of such mail, a duplicate copy of names and addresses to which such mail was sent, and a completed form prescribed by the state board of elections. Such form shall contain: the full name, residence and business address, and the name of the employer of the person who pays for, mails or causes to be mailed the mailing; the approximate number of pieces of such mail; and a statement certifying the accuracy of such duplicate copies and of the information contained in the complete form. The failure to comply with the provisions of this subdivision shall create a presumption that such mail shall not be used to challenge the qualifications of a voter.
§ 2. Section 8-502 of the election law, as amended by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02460-08-9
S. 2301--B 2
§ 8-502. Challenges; generally. 1. Before his or her vote is cast at an election any person may be challenged as to his or her right to vote, in accordance with the provisions of this section, or his or her right to vote by absentee, military, special federal or special presidential ballot. Such challenge may be made by an inspector or clerk, by any duly appointed watcher, or by any registered voter properly in the polling place in accordance with the provisions of this section.
2. An inspector shall challenge every person offering to vote, whom he or she shall know or suspect is not entitled to vote in the district, and every person whose name appears on the list of persons to be challenged on election day which is furnished by the board of elections.
3. Any person, other than an inspector or clerk, may challenge the qualifications of a voter only by completing, executing and delivering to the board of inspectors a challenge affidavit that satisfies the requirements of section 8-503 of this title.
§ 3. The election law is amended by adding a new section 8-503 to read as follows:
§ 8-503. Challenge affidavit. 1. The state board of elections shall prescribe the content and form of a challenge affidavit for use at any general, special, town or village election and at any primary election. Such affidavit shall contain the affiant's full name, residence and business address, the name of his or her employer, the registration serial number of the person challenged and a recital of the reasons and the facts supporting the affiant's belief that the person challenged lacks one or more of the qualifications for voting prescribed in section 5-102 or 5-106 of this chapter and specified in such affidavit. The affidavit shall state if the reason for challenge are based upon the affiant's personal knowledge or upon information received from another person. If the affiant's belief is based upon information furnished by another, the affidavit shall recite the name of the person furnishing the information and the basis for his or her information. After the affiant has filed such affidavit, an inspector from each major party shall read to him or her and request him or her to sign the following oath which shall be subscribed by such affiant: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I am a qualified voter of the city or county in which this affidavit is signed and that the foregoing statement made by me on (insert day, month and year) is a truthful disclosure of the reasons for my belief that the registered voter therein named is not qualified to vote in the election district in which he or she is now registered." If the affiant shall take and sign such oath, an inspector shall sign his or her name as a witness below the affiant's subscription to such oath. An inspector may request state-issued identification to affirm the identity of the challenger. Each challenge affidavit shall only challenge the qualifications of one voter.
2. The boards of elections shall make challenge affidavit forms available to all qualified voters.
§ 4. Subdivision 2 of section 8-504 of the election law, as renumbered by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
2. (a) If the applicant shall take the preliminary oath, the inspector shall ask the applicant [such] the following questions as [may] they pertain to the reason his or her right to vote at such election in such district was challenged[.]:
Are you eighteen years of age or older?
Are you a citizen of the United States?
S. 2301--B 3
Have you been a resident of this state and of this county (and the City of New York or village, as applicable) for the past thirty days or more?
Do you swear that you have not already voted at this election?
(b) If any applicant shall refuse to answer fully any of the questions [which may be put to him] in this subdivision, he or she shall not be permitted to vote.
§ 5. Section 8-504 of the election law is amended by adding a new subdivision 9 to read as follows:
9. Information concerning the citizenship status of individuals, when collected and transmitted pursuant to this section, shall not be retained, used or shared for any other purpose except as may be required by law. A failure to certify that an individual is a citizen of the United States shall be considered an innocent error. Such person failing to certify United States citizenship shall not be considered as attempting to register to vote.
§ 6. Paragraphs (b) and (e) of subdivision 2 of section 8-508 of the election law, as amended by section 11 of part XX of chapter 55 of the laws of 2019, are amended to read as follows:
(b) The second section of such report shall be reserved for the board of inspectors to enter the name, address and registration serial number of each person who is challenged at the time of voting together with the reason for the challenge, the name and address of the person challenging the qualifications of such voter, if such person challenging the qualifications is not an inspector or clerk, and the words "Permitted to Vote" or "Refused to take oath". If no voters are challenged, the board of inspectors shall enter the words "No Challenges" across the space reserved for such names. In lieu of preparing section two of the challenge report, the board of elections may provide, next to the name of each voter in the computer generated registration list, a place for the inspectors of election to record the information required to be entered in such section two, or provide elsewhere in such registration list, a place for the inspectors of election to enter such information.
(e) At the foot of such report or at the end of any such computer generated registration list, if applicable, shall be a certificate that such report or list contains the names of all persons who were challenged on the day of election, [and] the reason for such challenge and the names and addresses of all challengers who are not inspectors or clerks that each voter so reported as having been challenged took the oaths as required, that such report or list contains the names of all voters to whom such board gave or allowed assistance and lists the nature of the disability which required such assistance to be given and the names and family relationship, if any, to the voter of the persons by whom such assistance was rendered; that each such assisted voter informed such board under oath that he required such assistance and that each person rendering such assistance took the required oath; that such report or list contains the names of all voters who were permitted to vote although their registration poll records were missing; that the entries made by such board are a true and accurate record of its proceedings with respect to the persons named in such report or list.
§ 7. Subdivision 3 of section 8-510 of the election law, as amended by section 12 of part XX of chapter 55 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
3. The inspectors shall place such completed report, each challenge affidavit and each court order, if any, directing that a person be permitted to vote, in the secure container provided by the county board
S. 2301--B 4
of elections for such ledger of registration records or computer generated registration lists and then shall close and seal each ledger of registration records or computer generated registration lists, lock such ledger in the carrying case furnished for that purpose and enclose the keys in a sealed package or seal such list in the envelope provided for that purpose.
§ 8. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 17-108 of the election law, as amended by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, are amended to read as follows:
1. Any person who wilfully loses, alters, destroys or mutilates the list of voters or registration poll ledgers, a challenge affidavit, or a challenge report in any election district, or a certified copy thereof, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
2. An applicant for registration who shall make, incorporate or cause to be incorporated a material false statement in an application for registration, or in any challenge or other affidavit required for or made or filed in connection with registration or voting, and any person who knowingly takes a false oath before a board of inspectors of election, and any person who makes a material false statement in a medical certificate, a challenge affidavit or an affidavit filed in connection with an application for registration, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
§ 9. This act shall take effect January 1, 2020.
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 providing protections against illegal voter purging
Purpose of bill
The purpose of this bill is to enhance the ability of every qualified New Yorkers to exercise his or her fundamental right to vote by bolster- ing voter protections when challenges to voter qualifications are made by non-election officials.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 adds a new subdivision 4 to section 4-117 of the Election Law to provide that any person, other than an'election officer, who mails or causes to be mailed, between August 1St and December 314 of any calendar year, any first class nonforwardable mail, where such person knows or reasonably should know that such nonforwardable mail:
Read the full memo (819 words)
(a) is intended to be delivered to a registered voter; and (b) may be used by a challenger, other than an election officer, on election day to challenge the qualifications of a voter, shall file with the board of elections within 2 business days a duplicate copy of the nonforwardable mail, a duplicate copy of the names and addresses to which such mail was sent and a completed form as prescribed the board of elections. Failure to comply with the requirements of this newly added subdivision is made punishable as a misdemeanor.
Section 2 amends section 8-502 of the Election Law to require any person, other than an election inspector, who challenges the qualifica- tions of a voter to complete, execute and deliver to the board of inspectors a challenge affidavit that satisfies the requirements of section 8-503 of the Election Law.
Section 3 adds a new section 8-503 to the Election Law to: (a) require NYS BOE to prescribe the form and content of an election day challenge affidavit for use at any election and make the forms available to all qualified voters, and (b) establish the procedures to be followed by a person completing a challenge affidavit and by the election inspector administering the oath/affirmation required by that section.
Section 4 amends 8-504 of the Election Law to prescribe the questions and preliminary oath given to voter's whose qualifications are chal- lenged.
Section 5 amends section 8-504 of the Election Law to by adding a new section 9 to provide that information concerning the individual's citi- zenship status collected during the challenging process should not be retained, used or shared for any other purpose except for voting quali- fication purposes.
Section 6 amends paragraphs (b) and (e) of subdivision 2,of section B-508 of the Election law to require the challenge report to include, in addition to the name and address of the voter challenged, the name and address of the person who challenged such voter, if such person is not an election inspector, and to include in the Certification for the
report the reason for such challenge and the name of all challengers who are not inspectors or clerks.
Section 7 amends subdivision 3 of section 8-510 of the Election Law to require that each challenge affidavit be secured with the challenge report.
Section 8 amends subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 17-108 of the Election Law to add challenge reports and challenge affidavits to the list of items in that section that, if willfully lost, altered, destroyed or mutilated by any person, or a false statement in made in connection with, constitutes a misdemeanor.
Section 9 sets forth the effective date.
Justification
It is essential that challenges to voter eligibility protect against improper discriminatory allegations made solely to disenfranchise or intimidate voters. Such improper challenges have frequently targeted voters of color, student voters, and voters with disabilities. It is imperative that steps are taken to help ensure that qualified voters are not subjected to such challenges at the polling place or prevented from exercising their fundamental right to vote.
This bill will require that adequate protections are in place to help ensure that such allegations are not made without proper proof and documentation.
Such protections include requiring any person, other than an election inspector, who challenges the qualifications of a voter at an election to complete, execute and deliver to the board of inspectors a "challenge affidavit" that includes specific identifying information about the affiant (e g., name, residence and business address and employer) as well as a recital of the reasons and facts supporting the affiant's belief that the challenged voter lacks one or more of the legal quali- fications for voting. The bill would also add making a false statement on the challenge affidavit, or destroying a challenge report or chal- lenge affidavit to the list of items that constitute a misdemeanor. These provisions will bolster protections for qualified voters to ensure their fundamental right to vote is preserved.
Legislative history
2018: S8654/A6587 - Elections/Election Law 2017: A6587 - Election Law
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
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