After record-breaking turnout across the country in last year’s general election, a new report from the Brennan Center for Justice found that 49 states introduced more than 425 bills to restrict voting access. New York was one of them.
For the first time, voters must apply for an absentee ballot more than a week earlier than in previous elections. Under a new law passed by the legislature last spring, local Boards of Election must receive a voter’s absentee ballot application 15 days ahead of the election. Voters used to be able to mail their applications up to a week before Election Day.
That makes the deadline Monday, October 18th for Boards of Elections to receive absentee ballot applications for the general election on November 2nd.
The law puts New York among seven states that passed laws to reduce the amount of time voters have to apply for a mail ballot. The other states include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, and Oklahoma.
The new absentee ballot application law stands apart from a spate of other election reforms enacted by the state legislature since Democrats took control of the State Senate in 2019. Those changes include the establishment of early voting, automatic voter registration, restoring voting rights to those formerly incarcerated, and two upcoming ballot initiatives to establish same-day voter registration and a no-excuse absentee ballot system, which have all been heralded by advocates as steps towards expanding access to the ballot.
State Senator Zellnor Myrie, who chairs the committee on Elections and sponsored the law that shortened the absentee ballot window, said this change was also aimed at protecting — not punishing — voters.
“In 2020 the Board of Elections mailed out nearly 35,000 absentee ballots the day before the election, making it unlikely or impossible they would be received by voters in time. We think this new law will expand, not restrict, access to absentee ballots by providing a more realistic timeframe for the BOE to actually process requests and get ballots back out the door,” Myrie said.
“We are in the business of knocking down barriers to voting, and if we learn this law is not meeting that objective, of course we will revisit it,” he added.
Here’s what you need to know if you plan to apply for an absentee ballot.
How do I apply for an absentee ballot?
You can apply for an absentee ballot through the city’s online portal, mail, email or fax. The key thing is to make sure that application is received by Monday, October 18th. If you are applying because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, select the box for “temporary illness” on your application.
Is there a way to check to make sure the Board of Elections has my application?
You should be able to visit the absentee ballot tracker to make sure the application was received. The BOE says it takes 24 hours for the system to update and may take 72 hours for an application to be entered in the system.
Once my absentee ballot arrives, what happens after I fill it out and send it back?
Again, that absentee ballot tracker should tell you when the BOE receives the ballot. Absentee ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day, November 2nd and received by the BOE by November 9th, or for overseas military ballots, November 15th. You can also drop off an absentee ballot at any early voting site or Board of Elections office.
I think I might have forgotten to sign my oath envelope. Will my vote count?
It should if you reply promptly when the BOE contacts you about fixing your ballot. The legislature enacted what’s called a cure process which requires the BOE to contact the voter if they receive a ballot with certain correctable errors. The full cure process is detailed here.
I haven’t made up my mind yet. What’s the absolute deadline to apply for an absentee ballot?
You can apply in-person at a BOE office for an absentee ballot as late as November 1st. But again, those requesting an absentee ballot online or by mail must make sure their application is received by the BOE by October 18th.
