Assembly Bill A7858

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7858
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              April 11, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. WALKER -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Election Law
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to primary election voting
   ballots in the city of New York
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Section 7-116 of the election law is amended  by  adding  a
 new subdivision 6-a to read as follows:
   6-A.  NOTWITHSTANDING  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  SUBDIVISION  SIX  OF  THIS
 SECTION, IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE BALLOT ON THE VOTING  MACHINE  FOR
 PRIMARY ELECTIONS SHALL CONFORM TO THE FOLLOWING ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS:
   THE NAMES OF THE CANDIDATES DESIGNATED FOR SUCH PUBLIC OFFICE OR PARTY
 POSITION  IN  THE  PRIMARY OF A PARTY SHALL BE PLACED UNDER THE TITLE OF
 THE OFFICE OR POSITION IN THE ALPHABETICAL ORDER OF THEIR  SURNAMES,  IN
 THE  FIRST OR LOWEST NUMBERED ASSEMBLY DISTRICT AND ELECTION DISTRICT OF
 ANY POLITICAL UNIT  OR  SUBDIVISION  WITHIN  A  COUNTY.  IF  CANDIDATES'
 SURNAMES  ARE IDENTICAL, THEIR GIVEN OR FIRST NAME SHALL DETERMINE THEIR
 ORDER. THEREAFTER THE NAMES SHALL BE ROTATED BY  ELECTION  DISTRICTS  BY
 TRANSPOSING THE FIRST NAMED CANDIDATE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE ORDER AT EACH
 SUCCEEDING  ELECTION  DISTRICT, SO THAT EACH NAME SHALL APPEAR FIRST AND
 IN EACH OTHER POSITION IN AN EQUAL NUMBER, AS NEARLY AS POSSIBLE, OF THE
 ELECTION DISTRICTS AND EXCEPT, FURTHER, THAT WHERE TWO  OR  MORE  CANDI-
 DATES  ARE TO BE ELECTED TO THE SAME PARTY POSITION, THE NAMES OF CANDI-
 DATES FOR SUCH A POSITION WHICH APPEAR ON THE SAME DESIGNATING  PETITION
 SHALL  BE  GROUPED  TOGETHER  ON  THE BALLOT IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEIR
 NAMES APPEAR ON THE DESIGNATING PETITION AND THE GROUP ROTATED ALPHABET-
 ICALLY IN RELATION TO OTHER GROUPS OR INDIVIDUAL CANDIDATES ACCORDING TO
 THE SURNAME OF THE FIRST PERSON ON  THE  DESIGNATING  PETITION  OF  SUCH
 GROUP.  GROUPS  OF  CANDIDATES  FOR DELEGATE AND ALTERNATE DELEGATE, AND
 GROUPS OF CANDIDATES FOR MALE AND FEMALE DELEGATE AND  MALE  AND  FEMALE
 ALTERNATE  DELEGATE  TO THE SAME CONVENTION DESIGNATED ON THE SAME PETI-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03269-01-5
              

 A. 7858                             2
 
 TION SHALL BE ROTATED  TOGETHER  ALPHABETICALLY  IN  RELATION  TO  OTHER
 GROUPS  OR  INDIVIDUAL  CANDIDATES ACCORDING TO THE SURNAME OF THE FIRST
 PERSON LISTED ON SUCH DESIGNATING PETITION IN THE  GROUP  OF  CANDIDATES
 FOR  WHICHEVER  OF  SUCH  DELEGATE  OR ALTERNATE DELEGATE POSITIONS WILL
 APPEAR FIRST ON THE VOTING MACHINE. IF THE RULES OF  A  PARTY  COMMITTEE
 PROVIDE  FOR  EQUAL  REPRESENTATION  OF THE SEXES AMONG THE MEMBERS OF A
 STATE COMMITTEE ELECTED FROM EACH UNIT OF REPRESENTATION, ELECTIONS  FOR
 MALE AND FEMALE MEMBERS OF SUCH A COMMITTEE FROM A SINGLE UNIT OF REPRE-
 SENTATION  SHALL BE CONDUCTED AS ELECTIONS FOR TWO DIFFERENT PARTY POSI-
 TIONS.  NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF THIS PARAGRAPH, IF  THE  BOARD
 OF  ELECTIONS  HAS  ASSIGNED  NUMBERS TO THE CANDIDATES FOR AN OFFICE OR
 POSITION BECAUSE OF IDENTICAL OR SIMILAR NAMES  AMONG  SUCH  CANDIDATES,
 THE  NAMES  OF  SUCH  CANDIDATES SHALL BE PLACED UNDER THE TITLE OF SUCH
 OFFICE OR POSITION IN THE ORDER OF SUCH NUMBERS IN SUCH FIRST OR  LOWEST
 NUMBERED  DISTRICT,  AND  THE  NAMES  SHALL  NOT  BE ROTATED BY ELECTION
 DISTRICT. SUCH NAMES SHALL APPEAR IN THE IDENTICAL ORDER ON EACH  BALLOT
 IN EACH ELECTION DISTRICT.
   COUNTY  COMMITTEE  CANDIDATES OR GROUPS OF CANDIDATES SHALL BE PRINTED
 WITHIN THE FIRST ELECTION DISTRICT OF EACH  ASSEMBLY  DISTRICT  OR  PART
 THEREOF,  ACCORDING  TO  THE PRIORITY OF FILING OF DESIGNATING PETITIONS
 AND THEY SHALL THEN BE ROTATED  BY  ELECTION  DISTRICT  BY  PLACING  THE
 CANDIDATE  OR GROUP OF CANDIDATES DESIGNATED IN THE SAME PETITION AS THE
 CANDIDATE OR GROUP OF CANDIDATES WHICH WAS PRINTED FIRST IN AN  ELECTION
 DISTRICT  AT  THE  BOTTOM  OF  THE ORDER IN THE NEXT SUCCEEDING ELECTION
 DISTRICT IN WHICH A CANDIDATE OR GROUP OF CANDIDATES DESIGNATED IN  SUCH
 PETITION APPEARS ON THE BALLOT.
   IN  CASES WHERE A NAME IS ADDED TO OR REMOVED FROM THE BALLOT BY COURT
 ORDER TOO LATE TO MAKE  A  COMPLETE  ADJUSTMENT  TO  THESE  REQUIREMENTS
 FEASIBLE,  THE NAME MAY BE ADDED AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST OF CANDIDATES
 IN ALL ELECTION DISTRICTS, OR REMOVED FROM THE BALLOT  IN  ALL  ELECTION
 DISTRICTS  WITHOUT CHANGING THE PREVIOUSLY ARRANGED ORDER OF OTHER NAMES
 AND WITHOUT INVALIDATING THE ELECTION.  ANY  INADVERTENT  ERROR  IN  THE
 ORDER  OF NAMES DISCOVERED TOO LATE TO CORRECT THE ORDER OF THE NAMES ON
 THE BALLOTS CONCERNED SHALL NOT INVALIDATE AN ELECTION.
   EXCEPT WHERE A CONTEST OR CANDIDATE IS  REMOVED  FROM  THE  BALLOT  BY
 COURT  ORDER  TOO  LATE  TO MAKE COMPLETE COMPLIANCE WITH THIS PARAGRAPH
 FEASIBLE, THE TITLE OF EACH PUBLIC OFFICE  OR  PARTY  POSITION  AND  THE
 NAMES  OF  THE  CANDIDATES  FOR SUCH OFFICE OR POSITION APPEARING ON ANY
 VOTING MACHINE USED FOR PRIMARY ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK  SHALL
 APPEAR  ON  SUCH  MACHINE  IMMEDIATELY  ADJACENT  TO ONE ANOTHER, EITHER
 HORIZONTALLY OR VERTICALLY; AND NO BLANK SPACES SHALL SEPARATE THE NAMES
 OF CANDIDATES ACTUALLY RUNNING FOR AN OFFICE OR PARTY POSITION  ON  SUCH
 VOTING  MACHINE, AND NO BLANK SPACES SHALL SEPARATE ANY TWO SUCH OFFICES
 OR POSITIONS WHICH APPEAR ON SUCH VOTING MACHINE IN THE SAME  COLUMN  OR
 ROW.
   §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
 have become a law and shall apply to elections occurring  on  and  after
 such date.