Provides that at a primary election, a voter who is not enrolled in a political party may designate the ballot of one political party qualified to participate in such election and shall be provided with and permitted to vote only in the primary election of the political party so designated; excludes presidential primary elections.
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
11650
I N A S S E M B L Y
July 29, 2026
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Berger) --
read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to allowing voters not
enrolled in a political party to designate and vote in the primary
election of a political party
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 5-308 of the election law, as
amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as
follows:
1. The board of elections shall, promptly and not later than twenty-
one days after receipt of a voter registration or pre-registration
application submitted pursuant to title nine of this article by a voter
registering or pre-registering for the first time, send any such voter
who did not enroll in a party a notice and a form to indicate party
enrollment. Such notice shall offer the voter the opportunity to enroll
with a party or to decline to enroll with a party [and contain the
following statement in prominent type "ONLY ENROLLED MEMBERS OF A POLI-
TICAL PARTY MAY VOTE IN THAT PARTY'S PRIMARIES."]. Such form shall
provide a clear alternative for the applicant to decline to affiliate
with any party.
§ 2. Section 8-302 of the election law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 4-a to read as follows:
4-A. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION FOUR OF THIS
SECTION, AT A PRIMARY ELECTION, A VOTER WHO IS NOT ENROLLED IN A POLI-
TICAL PARTY MAY DESIGNATE THE BALLOT OF ONE POLITICAL PARTY QUALIFIED TO
PARTICIPATE IN SUCH ELECTION AND SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH AND PERMITTED TO
VOTE ONLY IN THE PRIMARY ELECTION OF THE POLITICAL PARTY SO DESIGNATED,
PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL NOT
APPLY TO A PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY ELECTION.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16118-01-6
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