S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7191
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               June 4, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  RYAN  --  read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to write-in ballots
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Section  6-164 of the election law, as amended by chapter
 440 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   § 6-164. Primary, uncontested; opportunity to ballot. Enrolled members
 of a party entitled to vote in the nomination of a candidate for  public
 office  or  the  election of a candidate for party position in a primary
 election of such party, and equal in number to at least  the  number  of
 signers  required  to  designate a candidate for such office or position
 may file with the officer or board with whom or which are  filed  desig-
 nating  petitions  for  such office or position a petition requesting an
 opportunity to write in the name of a candidate or  candidates  ENROLLED
 IN  SUCH  PARTY, who need not be specified, for such office or position.
 Upon the receipt of such a petition, such office or  position  shall  be
 deemed  contested  and  the primary ballots of the party shall afford an
 opportunity to vote thereon. Requests for an opportunity to write in the
 names of candidates for two or more offices or positions may be included
 in the same petition. Such petitions shall be subject to objections  and
 court  determination thereof in the same manner as designating petitions
 so far as the provisions therefor are applicable. All  required  notices
 shall  be  served on the members of the committee named in the petition,
 and such committee shall have capacity to bring a proceeding under  this
 chapter  as  if  such  committee  was a candidate named on a petition. A
 signature to  a  petition  for  an  opportunity  to  ballot  in  primary
 elections  made  earlier  than  sixteen days before the last day to file
 designating petitions for the primary election shall not be counted.
   § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 6-166 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 235 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD11625-04-1

 S. 7191                             2
 
   2. Each sheet of such petition shall be signed in  ink  and  shall  be
 substantially in the following form:
   I, the undersigned, do hereby state that I am a duly enrolled voter of
 the  ..........  party and entitled to vote at the next primary election
 of such party, that my place of residence is truly  stated  opposite  my
 signature hereto, and I do hereby request an opportunity to write in the
 name  of  an undesignated candidate or candidates ENROLLED IN SUCH PARTY
 for nomination to the public office or offices or for  election  to  the
 party position or positions, in the political unit or units of represen-
 tation  hereinafter set forth, of such party to be voted on the .....day
 of .............  20...., as hereinafter specified.
 Public Office or party               Political unit or unit of
 position .............               representation.................
 
 The appointment of a committee to receive notices, the signatures on the
 petition with all required information and the  signed  statement  of  a
 witness  or  authentication by a notary public or commissioner of deeds,
 shall be in the form prescribed for a designating petition.
   § 3. Section 8-308 of the election law, subdivision 2 as  amended  and
 subdivision  3  as  renumbered  by  chapter  13 of the laws of 1988, and
 subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 395 of the laws of 2015, is  amended
 to read as follows:
   §  8-308.  Voting; voting [machine] write-in. 1. Ballots voted for any
 person whose name does not appear on the [machine] BALLOT as a nominated
 or designated candidate for public office or party position are referred
 to in this article as write-in ballots.
   2. No write-in ballot shall be voted for any  person  for  any  office
 whose  name appears on the [machine] BALLOT as a nominated or designated
 candidate for the office or position in question; any write-in ballot so
 voted shall not be counted.
   3. A write-in ballot must be cast in  its  appropriate  place  on  the
 [machine] BALLOT, or it shall be void and not counted.
   4.  A  WRITE-IN  BALLOT  CAST  IN  A PARTY PRIMARY FOR A CANDIDATE NOT
 ENROLLED IN SUCH PARTY SHALL BE VOID AND NOT COUNTED.
   5. A write-in ballot may also be cast by the use of a name stamp.  The
 use of name stickers, labels or pasters is prohibited.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.