N.Y. Election Law § 9-208: Provisions for recanvass of vote in every election district in the state; procedure in case of discrepancy

§ 9-208. Provisions for recanvass of vote in every election district

in the state; procedure in case of discrepancy. 1. Within fifteen days

after each general or special election, and within twenty days after a

primary election, and within seven days after every village election

conducted by the board of elections at which ballot scanners are used,

the board of elections, or a bipartisan committee of or appointed by

said board shall, in each county using ballot scanners, make a record of

the serial number of each ballot scanner used in each election district

in such general, special or primary election. No person who was a

candidate at such election shall be appointed to membership on the

committee. Such board of elections or bipartisan committee shall

recanvass the tabulated result tape from each ballot scanner used in

each election district by comparing such tape with the numbers as

recorded on the return of canvass. The said board or committee shall

also make a recanvass of any election day paper ballots that have not

been scanned and were hand counted pursuant to subdivision two of

section 9-110 of this article and compare the results with the number as

recorded on the return of canvass. The board or committee shall then

recanvass write-in votes, if any, on ballots which were otherwise

scanned and canvassed at polling places on election night. The board or

committee shall validate and prove such sums. Before making such canvass

the board of elections, with respect to each election district to be

recanvassed, shall give notice in writing to the voting machine

custodian thereof, to the state and county chair of each party or

independent body which shall have nominated candidates for the said

general or special election or nominated or elected candidates at the

said primary election and to each individual candidate whose name

appears on the office ballot, of the time and place where such canvass

is to be made; and the state and county chair of each such party or

independent body and each such individual candidate may send a

representative to be present at such recanvass. Each candidate whose

name appears on the official ballot, or his or her representative, shall

have the right personally to examine and make a record of the vote

recorded on the tabulated result tape and any ballots which were hand

counted.

2. If upon such recanvass, it shall be found that the original canvass

of the returns of an election district has been incorrectly made from

any tabulated result tape plus any ballots which were hand counted, a

statement in writing shall be prepared giving the details for any

corrections made for such election district. The result of the

recanvass, and such statement shall be witnessed by the persons required

to be present and shall be filed with the board of elections. Such

recanvass of votes made pursuant hereto shall thereupon supersede the

returns filed by the inspectors of election of the election district in

which the canvass was made.

3. If upon the recanvass of an election district, it shall be found

that a discrepancy exists between the number of voters who cast a vote

in an election district and the number of votes recorded on the

tabulated results tape plus any election day paper ballots counted by

hand the board of elections, or the committee thereof, shall proceed

thoroughly to examine all the election day paper ballots in that

election district to determine the result from such election district.

The result of this examination of election day ballots shall supersede

the returns filed by the inspectors of election of the election district

in which the canvass was made. After the completion of such examination,

the board of elections, or the committee thereof, shall then and there

prepare a statement in writing giving in detail the result thereof, and

such statement shall be witnessed by the persons required to be present

and shall be filed in the office of the board of elections.

4. (a) The board of elections or a bipartisan committee appointed by

the board shall conduct a full manual recount of all ballots for a

particular contest:

i. Where the margin of victory is twenty votes or less; or

ii. Where the margin of victory is 0.5% or less; or

iii. In a contest where one million or more ballots have been cast and

the margin of victory is less than 5,000 votes.

(b) For the purposes of this section, the term margin of victory shall

mean the margin between all votes cast in the entire contest following

the recanvass of votes.

(c) Where the contest involves portions of two or more counties, the

margin of victory shall be determined by the state board of elections

based on the most recent recanvass results for the contest submitted by

the boards of elections of the counties involved.

(d) No board of elections shall commence a full manual recount of a

particular contest unless and until such board of elections has

completed and announced the results of the recanvass required by

subdivision one of this section, for each applicable election district.

(e) The result of the manual recount of ballots shall supersede the

returns filed by the inspectors of election of the election district in

which the canvass was initially made.