How To Vote in New York

by Jordan Karpoff and Jeffrey M. Wice

Election Day — November 5, 2024 — is fast-approaching. In New York. The last day to register to vote in this year’s elections is October 26. 

Once you are registered to vote, you can vote in-person during the eight-day early voting period or on Election Day, or you can vote by mail through the ‘absentee voting’ process. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day or they can be dropped off at designated sites through Election Day.

New York’s deadline to apply for a mail-in ballot is October 26 by mail or November 4 in person at your local board of elections office. Individualized voter registration information, poll sites, and absentee ballot tracking can be found by clicking here. 

First time voters who register on October 26 can also vote at the same time that day during the state’s early voting process. 

Early Voting

In-person early voting is similar to voting on Election Day. At an early voting site, which might be different than your Election Day polling place, you privately mark and scan a paper ballot that is fed into a voting machine. Results are counted and included in election night results.

Early voting begins Saturday October 26 and ends Sunday November 3. The hours for each poll place vary depending on what jurisdiction you live in. Voters can look up their early voting and Election Day poll site(s) here, or early voting can also be done by mail, and voters can request an absentee ballot here.

Mail-In Voting

Voting by mail can include early voting or absentee voting. If you choose to vote by mail: once you receive a mail-in absentee ballot, mark the ballot with your candidate choices for each office following the instructions that are provided. Once completed, fold the ballot and place it in the Security Envelope, sign and date the Security Envelope, seal it, and then place it in the Return Envelope. 

Seal the Return Envelope and mail the ballot out (no additional postage needed). All mail ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day, November 5, and received by your county board of elections no later than November 12. 

Alternatively, voters can bring their absentee ballot to their county board of elections no later than November 5 by 9pm or to an early voting poll site in their home county between October 26 and November 3, or bring it to a poll site in the county on Election Day, November 5, by 9pm. 

Voters who have early mail or absentee ballots cannot use a voting machine at the poll site on Election Day. If a voter uses the absentee or early mail ballot, she or he can only vote in person with an affidavit ballot at the poll site, not with a voting machine. 

Voting in Person – Additional Details

Once the voter arrives at the polling place, they will sign in and get their paper ballot from the poll worker, along with a privacy sleeve to shield the ballot from view. The voter will then fill out the ballot in a privacy booth. If a voter makes an error, they may request a new ballot (up to three times) at any time prior to inserting it into the scanner. Once the ballot is completed, the voter will take the ballot to the scanner area and insert the marked ballot to cast their vote.

Voters are not required to bring Photo ID to vote in New York unless they are a first-time voter. First-time voters are required to bring additional identification to document who they are. This is a one-time only requirement in New York. ID can include: current and valid government photo ID; a current utility bill; bank statement; government check or paycheck; government document that shows name and address. 

Voters in line at the close of polls at 9pm on Election Day must be allowed to vote. If a voter makes a mistake on the ballot, a new ballot must be provided upon request. If the machines are down and not working at the polling place, paper ballots must be provided.

If a voter arrives to vote with an assistant or helper, they will sign in with the poll site inspector who will enter the assistant’s name and address on the poll pad. The assistant will then read the oath on the poll pad and sign their name. If a voter requests language assistance (or are differently abled when voting) the poll site coordinator should help the voter.

Affidavit Voting

If a voter shows up to vote in person and is not found in the poll pad registry, they can vote by using a paper affidavit ballot.This may apply in various circumstances, including if the voter was erroneously removed from the voter roll; when the voter has recently moved within the election district and the address in the poll pad is different; the poll pad says “ID required” and the voter cannot present proper ID; the voter is actively registered elsewhere in the state and has recently moved to a different county; the voter changed their name and is not comfortable with it being noted on the Inspector Remarks; the voter’s registration is marked as inactive; there is no signature on file for the voter; the voter’s record is marked as already voted and the voter states that they did not vote; the voter was issued an absentee ballot. 

Voters should be issued a blue notice that explains their right to vote by affidavit ballot. All instances of voting by affidavit should be reported by the Voting Inspector to the New York Attorney General’s voter protection hotline, recording the appropriate details so that the issue can be investigated (voter name, reason why the affidavit was issued, results of voter lookup, etc.).

For each affidavit ballot issued, the Voting Inspector should ensure that several fields are completed: full name; signature; date of birth (including birth year); full street address including house number and town (cannot be a P.O. Box); citizenship affirmation. The affidavit must be sealed and signed by the voter in front of the Inspector.

Problems

Voters sometimes go to the wrong poll site. If that occurs, the voter needs to go to the correct poll site in order for their vote to count. Election Inspectors are required to provide the correct poll site to voters who may show up at the wrong site. Click here to look up your poll site. 

If a voter moved within the same election district, nothing should be different and they can sign-in at the same table as in the past. If the voter moved to a different election district within the same poll site, they should be directed to a different table to sign in and receive their ballot. If the voter moved to another election district at a different poll site, they should be directed to that poll site.

If anyone is intimidating voters or obstructing the voting process, report that person(s) to the election inspectors and contact the New York Attorney General’s voter protection hotline immediately. Do not try to address the issue yourself.

Voters can either call the New York Attorney General’s Election Hotline at (866) 390-2922 or fill out the Election Hotline Online Complaint Form. Click here for instructions on how to fill out the online complaint form. If voters run into any problems or have questions on Election Day, they may also call the ACLU Election Protection Hotline at (866) 687-8683 (for Spanish speakers, (888) 839-8682). 

Voting in New York has become much easier in the last few years. While many states are taking steps to make it harder to vote, New York has come a long way recently to making voting more accessible, faster, and efficient. This year, New Yorkers will be voting on the next president as well as candidates for the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, both houses of the State Legislature (Senate and Assembly), and other local offices.  The stakes are high and your voice matters — if you vote.

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by Jordan Karpoff, a student at New York Law School (NYLS), and Jeffrey M. Wice, an Adjunct Professor and Senior Fellow at New York Law School. Professor Wice directs the New York Elections, Census, and Redistricting Institute within NYLS’ Center for New York City and State Law.