N.Y. Election Law § 8-700: Early voting by mail; application for ballot

§ 8-700. Early voting by mail; application for ballot. 1. A registered

voter may apply to the county board of elections in the county in which

they are registered, or to the board of elections of the city of New

York, if registered in the city of New York, to vote early by mail under

this title in any election conducted by the board of elections in which

the voter is eligible to vote.

2. A registered voter who desires to vote early by mail at an election

must make an application to vote early by mail on a form to be obtained

and filed as provided in this section, by letter as provided in

paragraph (d) of this subdivision, or through the electronic early mail

ballot application transmittal system pursuant to section 8-706 of this

title.

(a) Application forms to vote early by mail shall be furnished by and

may be obtained from any board of elections at any time until the day

before such election, or on the electronic early mail ballot application

transmittal system. Application forms shall also be supplied by the

board of inspectors of the election district in which the applicant is a

registered voter on all of the days provided for local registration. In

addition, application forms shall be supplied upon the request of the

person authorized to vote pursuant to this section, any such person's

spouse, parent or child, a person residing with the applicant as a

member of their household, or the applicant's duly authorized agent.

Application forms sent outside of the United States to a country other

than Canada or Mexico, shall be sent by airmail. Any reference to "board

of elections" in the remaining provisions of this section, except with

respect to the furnishing and obtaining of applications to vote early by

mail, means only the board of elections of the county or city in which

the applicant is a registered voter.

(b) Applications may be filed with the board of elections, through the

electronic early mail ballot application transmittal system or in person

with the board of inspectors of the election district in which the

applicant is a registered voter on one of the days provided for local

registration.

(c) All applications requesting to vote early by mail transmitted by

mail or through the electronic early mail ballot application transmittal

system must be received by the board of elections not later than the

tenth day before the election for which a ballot is first requested.

Applications to vote early by mail delivered in person at the board of

elections must be received by such board not later than the day before

such election.

(d) The board of elections shall mail an early mail ballot to every

registered voter otherwise eligible for such a ballot, who requests such

an early mail ballot from such board of elections in writing in a

letter, telefax indicating the address, phone number and the telefax

number from which the writing is sent or other written instrument, or

through an electronic application submitted by the voter through the

electronic early mail ballot application transmittal system established

by the state board of elections, which is signed by the voter and

received by the board of elections not later than the tenth day before

the election for which the ballot is first requested and which states

the address where the voter is registered and the address to which the

ballot is to be mailed.

(e) When mailing an early mail ballot application to a voter the board

of elections shall provide a domestic postage paid return envelope. When

providing an early mail ballot application to a voter in-person, the

board of elections shall offer the voter a domestic postage paid return

envelope and provide one if requested.

3. The application for an early mail ballot when filed must contain in

each instance the following information:

(a) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,

including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,

mailing address if different from the residence address and their town

or city and an address to which the ballot shall be mailed.

(b) A statement that the applicant is a registered voter in the county

or city where they are applying to vote early by mail.

4. The application for an early mail ballot shall also provide the

applicant the opportunity to provide their telephone number and e-mail

address.

5. The application for an early mail ballot shall also provide the

applicant the opportunity to request to receive an early mail ballot for

all remaining elections in the calendar year in which the applicant is

eligible to vote. If an applicant indicates in the application for an

early mail ballot that they wish to receive an early mail ballot for all

remaining elections in the calendar year, upon filing of such

application, the board of elections shall indicate such request in the

voter's registration record. When early mail ballots are mailed for

subsequent elections in the calendar year in which the voter is eligible

to vote, the board of elections shall mail an early mail ballot to the

voter at their last known address by first class mail with a request to

the postal authorities not to forward such ballot but to return it in

five days in the event that it cannot be delivered to the addressee.

However, the board shall not be required to mail an early mail ballot

pursuant to this section if the voter's registration has been canceled

since the filing of such application.

6. The application for an early mail ballot shall contain the

following language printed in bold face directly above the signature

line: "I CERTIFY THAT THE INFORMATION IN THIS APPLICATION IS TRUE AND

CORRECT AND UNDERSTAND THAT THIS APPLICATION WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR ALL

PURPOSES AS THE EQUIVALENT OF AN AFFIDAVIT AND, IF IT CONTAINS A

MATERIAL FALSE STATEMENT, SHALL SUBJECT ME TO THE SAME PENALTIES AS IF I

HAD BEEN DULY SWORN." Such application shall be accepted for all

purposes as the equivalent of an affidavit and if it contains a material

false statement shall subject the person signing it to the same

penalties as if he or she had been duly sworn.

7. For purposes of this section, the use of titles, initials or

customary abbreviations of given names by the signers or witnesses of an

early mail ballot application or early mail ballot envelope, or the use

of customary abbreviations of addresses of such signers or witnesses,

shall not invalidate such voter's signature or witness's signature on an

application for early mail ballot or upon canvass or recanvass of the

ballot pursuant to this chapter.

8. (a) If a person entitled to an early mail ballot is unable to sign

their application because of illness, physical disability or inability

to read, they shall be excused from signing upon making a statement, in

substantially the following form, which shall be witnessed by one

person:

"I hereby state that I am unable to sign my application for an early

mail ballot without assistance because I am unable to write by reason of

illness or physical disability or because I am unable to read. I have

made, or have received assistance in making, my mark in lieu of my

signature."

.................

(Date)

.................

(Mark)

.................

(Name of Voter)

"I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the above named voter affixed

their mark to this application in my presence and I know them to be the

person who affixed their mark to said application and understand that

this statement will be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an

affidavit and if it contains a material false statement, shall subject

me to the same penalties as if I had been duly sworn."

......................

(Signature of Witness)

......................

(Address of Witness)

(b) Such statement shall be included in the application form furnished

by the board of elections.

9. Printed forms of applications for early mail ballots in accordance

with the requirements of this section shall be provided by the board of

elections. An appropriate number shall be retained by the board of

elections for the purpose of furnishing an application form to each

registered voter who applies therefor before the board of elections,

either in person or by mail, and an appropriate number shall be

delivered to each board of inspectors on registration days with the

election supplies, and the board of inspectors shall retain the

completed and unused applications and return them to the board of

elections with their election supplies and an appropriate number shall

be available for distribution to officers of political parties, county

clerks, city, town and village clerks, colleges, libraries, and any

other convenient distribution source which is approved by the local or

state board of elections and which requests such forms.

10. The state board of elections shall prescribe a standard

application form for use under this section. The use of any application

form which substantially complies with the provisions of this section

shall be acceptable and any application filed on such a form shall be

accepted for filing.