2016 New York Laws
ELN - Election
Article 7 - ELECTION BALLOT
Title 1 - (7-100 - 7-130) FORM OF BALLOTS
7-122 - Ballots; absentee voters.

  7-122. Ballots; absentee voters. 1. (a) Ballots for absentee voters
  shall be, as nearly as practicable, in the same  form  as  those  to  be
  voted  in  the district on election day, if any, except that ballots for
  primary elections shall omit the party position of ward, town,  city  or
  county  committee  and  except further that such ballots need not have a
  stub, and shall have the words "Absentee Ballot", endorsed thereon.
(b) The names of candidates  upon  the  ballot  shall  be  printed  in
  appropriate  sections, with titles of offices, section numbers, emblems,
  voting squares, names of parties and political organizations  and  blank
  spaces for writing in names of persons not printed on the ballot. Except
  as  to  the  spacing,  such  ballot shall be printed wherever applicable
  substantially as follows:
(Form in chap. 381/79)
(c) The indorsement shall be printed and properly filled in:
 
  Official  Absentee  Ballot  for  (General,  Primary   or   Special,   as
  applicable)
  Election
  County of......................
  (Assembly or Legislative, as applicable) District................
  (Ward and City or town, as applicable)...........................
  (Insert date of election)
  (Insert names of election commissioners providing the ballot)
(d) On the front of the ballot prepared for counting by hand, shall be
  printed in heavy black type the following instructions:
                            INSTRUCTIONS
1. Mark in pen or pencil.
2.  To vote for a candidate whose name is printed on this ballot, make
  a single cross X mark or a single check, V mark  in  the  voting  square
  above the name of the candidate.
3. To vote for a person whose name is not printed on this ballot write
  or  stamp his or her name in the space that appears at the bottom of the
  column or the end of the row (indicate where on the ballot the  write-in
  space appears) containing the title of the office.
4.  To vote on a proposal make a cross X mark or a check V mark in one
  of the squares contained in the box setting forth such proposal.
5. Any other mark or writing, or  any  erasure  made  on  this  ballot
  outside the voting squares or blank spaces provided for voting will void
  this entire ballot.
6.  Do not overvote. If you select a greater number of candidates than
  there are vacancies to be filled, your ballot  will  be  void  for  that
  public office, party position or proposal.
7. If you tear, or deface, or wrongly mark this ballot, call the board
  of  elections  at  (insert phone number here) for instructions on how to
  obtain a new ballot. Do not attempt to correct mistakes on the ballot by
  making erasures or cross outs. Erasures or cross outs may invalidate all
  or part of your ballot. Prior to submitting your ballot, if you  make  a
  mistake  in completing the ballot or wish to change your ballot choices,
  you may obtain and complete  a  new  ballot.  You  have  a  right  to  a
  replacement ballot upon return of the original ballot.
2.  The  following  provisions  shall  apply  to  all absentee ballots
  prepared for counting by a ballot scanner and all  other  provisions  of
  this  chapter not inconsistent with this subdivision shall be applicable
  to such ballots:
(a) The party emblem need not be printed next  to  the  name  of  each
  candidate.
(b)  The  ballot  proposals  may be on the back of the ballot, or on a
  separate ballot.

(c) The printed instructions to the voter shall read as follows:
                            INSTRUCTIONS
1. Mark only with a pen or pencil.
2.  To vote for a candidate whose name is printed on this ballot, fill
  in the (insert oval or square, as applicable) above or next to the  name
  of the candidate.
3.  To  vote  for  a  person whose name is not printed on this ballot,
  write or stamp his or her name in  the  space  labeled  "write-in"  that
  appears  (insert  at  the bottom of the column or the end of the row, as
  applicable) containing the title of the office and, if required  by  the
  voting  system  in  use  at  such  election, the instructions shall also
  include "and  fill  in  the  (insert  oval  or  square,  as  applicable)
  corresponding  with  the write-in space in which the voter has written a
  name."
4. To vote yes or no on a  proposal,  if  any,  that  appears  on  the
  (indicate  where  on  the  ballot  the  proposal may appear) fill in the
  (insert oval or square, as applicable) that corresponds to your vote.
5. Any other mark or writing, or  any  erasure  made  on  this  ballot
  outside the voting squares or blank spaces provided for voting will void
  this entire ballot.
6.  Do not overvote. If you select a greater number of candidates than
  there are vacancies to be filled, your ballot  will  be  void  for  that
  public office, party position or proposal.
7. If you tear, or deface, or wrongly mark this ballot, call the board
  of  elections  at  (insert phone number here) for instructions on how to
  obtain a new ballot. Do not attempt to correct mistakes on the ballot by
  making erasures or cross outs. Erasures or cross outs may invalidate all
  or part of your ballot. Prior to submitting your ballot, if you  make  a
  mistake  in completing the ballot or wish to change your ballot choices,
  you may obtain and complete  a  new  ballot.  You  have  a  right  to  a
  replacement ballot upon return of the original ballot.
(d)  Such  instructions  may  be  printed  on the front or back of the
  ballot or on a separate sheet or card.  If  such  instructions  are  not
  printed  on  the  front  of  the  ballot,  there shall be printed on the
  ballot, in the largest size type for which there is room, the  following
  legend: "See instructions on other side" or "See enclosed instructions",
  whichever is appropriate.
(e)  Such  ballots  which  are  to  be counted by a ballot scanner may
  consist of two  or  more  sheets,  which  are  divided  into  perforated
  sections which can be separated at the time of canvassing.
3.  The  determination of the appropriate county board of elections as
  to the candidates duly designated or  nominated  for  public  office  or
  party  position whose name shall appear on the absentee ballot and as to
  ballot proposals to be voted on shall be made  no  later  than  the  day
  after  the  state  board  of elections issues its certification of those
  candidates to be voted for at the general, special or primary  election.
  The  determinations  of  the state board of elections and the respective
  county boards of elections shall be final and conclusive with respect to
  such offices for which petitions or  certificates  are  required  to  be
  filed  with such boards, as the case may be but nothing herein contained
  shall prevent a board of elections, or a court of competent jurisdiction
  from  determining  at  a  later  date  that  any   such   certification,
  designation  or  nomination  is  invalid and, in the event of such later
  determination, no vote cast for any such nominee by any voter  shall  be
  counted at the election.
5.  The  board of elections shall furnish with each absentee ballot an
  inner affirmation envelope.  On  one  side  of  the  envelope  shall  be
  printed:

                      OFFICIAL ABSENTEE BALLOT
                                 for
              GENERAL (OR PRIMARY OR SPECIAL) ELECTION,
 
   ........., 20.....
  Name of voter.........................................
  Residence (street and number if any)..................
  City/or town of.......(village, if any)...............
  County of.............................................
  Assembly district ....................................
  Legislative District (as applicable) .................
  Ward (as applicable) .................................
  Election District.....................................
  Party Enrollment (in case of primary election)........
 
6.  The  date of the election, name of the county, and name of a city,
  if there be a separate ballot for city voters, shall be printed, and the
  name of the voter, residence, number of the assembly district,  if  any,
  name  of  town,  number  of  ward,  if  any, election district and party
  enrollment, if required, shall be either printed or written  or  stamped
  in by the board.
7.  There  shall  also  be  a  place  for  two  inspectors of opposite
  political parties to indicate, by placing their initials  thereon,  that
  they have checked and marked the voter's poll record.
8.  On  the  reverse  side of such inner affirmation envelope shall be
  printed the following statement:
                              AFFIRMATION
I do declare that I am a citizen of the United States, that I am  duly
  registered  in  the  election district shown on the reverse side of this
  envelope and I am qualified to vote in such district;  that  I  will  be
  unable  to  appear  personally on the day of the election for which this
  ballot is voted at the polling place of the election district in which I
  am a qualified voter because of  the  reason  given  on  my  application
  heretofore  submitted; that I have not qualified nor do I intend to vote
  elsewhere, that I have  not  committed  any  act  nor  am  I  under  any
  impediment which denies me the right to vote.
I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
  my  knowledge  and  belief, and I understand that if I make any material
  false statement in the foregoing statement of absentee voter, I shall be
  guilty of a misdemeanor.
 
  Date.................20.....       .....................................
                                 Signature or mark of voter
 
                                 .....................................
                                 Signature of Witness (required only
                                 if voter does not sign his own name)
 
                                 .....................................
                                 Address of Witness
 
9. The inner affirmation envelope shall be gummed, ready for  sealing,
  and  shall  have  printed  thereon,  on the side opposite the statement,
  instructions as to the duties of the voter  after  the  marking  of  the
  ballot,  which  instructions  shall include a specific direction stating
  when such ballot must be postmarked and when such ballot must reach  the
  office of the board of elections in order to be canvassed.

10.  Each  ballot  envelope  shall  be  enclosed  in an outer envelope
  addressed to the appropriate board of elections  and  bearing  on  it  a
  specific  direction  that  if  an  original  application for an absentee
  ballot is received with the ballot, such application must  be  completed
  by the voter and returned in the outer envelope together with the sealed
  inner  affirmation  envelope  containing  the absentee ballot within the
  time limits for receipt  of  the  absentee  ballot  itself.  Such  inner
  affirmation  envelope  and  outer  envelope shall be enclosed in a third
  envelope addressed to the absentee voter. The outer and third  envelopes
  shall   have   printed   on   the   face  thereof  the  words  "Election
  Material--Please Expedite".