2020 New York Laws
ELN - Election
Article 17 - Violations of the Elective Franchise
17-102 - Misdemeanors At, or in Connection With, Primary Elections, Caucuses, Enrollment in Political Parties, Committees, and Conventions.

Universal Citation:
NY Elec L § 17-102 (2020)
Learn more This media-neutral citation is based on the American Association of Law Libraries Universal Citation Guide and is not necessarily the official citation.

§ 17-102. Misdemeanors at, or in connection with, primary elections, caucuses, enrollment in political parties, committees, and conventions. Any person who:

1. At a primary election or caucus of a party, wilfully votes, or attempts to vote, without being entitled to do so, or votes, or attempts to vote under any other name than his own or on the same day more than once under his own name; or,

2. Votes, or offers to vote, at a primary election or caucus of a party, having voted at the primary election or caucus of any other political party on the same day, or being at the time enrolled in a party other than the party at whose primary or caucus he votes or offers to vote; or, who causes his name to be placed upon the rolls of a party organization of one party while his name is by his consent or procurement upon the rolls of a party organization of another party; or,

3. At a primary election or caucus, for the purpose of affecting the result thereof, votes or attempts to vote two or more ballots, or adds, or attempts to add, any ballot to those lawfully cast, by fraudulently introducing the same into the ballot box before or after the ballots therein have been counted, or who adds to or mixes with, or attempts to add to or mix with, the ballots lawfully cast, another ballot or other ballots before the votes have been counted or canvassed, or while the votes are being counted or canvassed; or at any time abstracts any ballots lawfully cast, with intent to change the result of such election or to change the count thereat in favor of or against any person voted for at such election, or to prevent the ballots being recounted or used as evidence; or carries away, destroys, loses, conceals, detains, secretes, mutilates, or attempts to carry away, destroy, conceal, detain, secrete, or mutilate, any tally lists, ballots, ballot boxes, enrollment books, certificates of return, or any official documents provided for by the election law or otherwise by law, for the purpose of affecting or invalidating the result of such election, or of destroying evidence; or in any manner interferes with the officers holding any primary election or conducting the canvass of the votes cast thereat, or with voters lawfully exercising, or seeking to exercise, their right of voting at such primary election; or,

4. For the purpose of securing enrollment as a member of a political party, or for the purpose of being allowed to vote at a primary election or caucus as a member of a political party makes, deposits or files with a board of inspectors, or with any public officer or board, a false declaration of party affiliation or wilfully makes a false declaration of residence, either by an enrollment blank or otherwise, or falsely answers any pertinent question asked him by the board of election inspectors, or by a member thereof; or,

5. Fraudulently or wrongfully does any act tending to affect the result of any primary election, caucus or convention; or,

6. Induces or attempts to induce any poll clerk, election inspector, election coordinator, or officer, clerk or employee of the board of elections discharging any duty or performing any act required or made necessary by the election law at a primary election or in connection with the registration or enrollment of voters, to do any act in violation of his duty or in violation of the election law; or,

7. Directly or indirectly, by himself or through any other person, pays, or offers to pay, money or other valuable thing, or promises a place or position, or offers any other consideration or makes any other promise, to any person, to induce any voter to vote, or refrain from voting, at a primary election or caucus, or convention, for or against any particular person; or does or offers to do, anything to hinder or delay any elector from taking part in or voting at a primary election or caucus; or,

8. By menace or other unlawful or corrupt means, directly or indirectly, influences or attempts to influence, the vote of any person entitled to vote at a primary election or caucus, or convention, or obstructs such person in voting, or prevents him from voting thereat; or,

9. Directly or indirectly, by himself or through another person, receives money or other valuable thing, or a promise of a place or position, before, at, or after any primary election or caucus, or convention, for voting or refraining from voting for or against any person, or for voting or refraining from voting at a primary election, caucus or convention; or,

10. Being an officer, teller, canvasser, or inspector, at a primary election or caucus, knowingly permits any fraudulent vote to be cast, or knowingly receives and deposits in the ballot box any ballots offered by any person not qualified to vote; or permits the removal of ballots from the polling place before the close of the polls, or refuses to receive ballots intended for the electors of the district, or refuses to deliver to any elector ballots intended for the electors of the district which have been delivered to the board of inspectors, or permits electioneering within the polling place or within one hundred feet therefrom, or fails to keep order within the polling place, or permits any person other than the inspectors, or other persons permitted by this chapter to render assistance, to accompany an elector into a voting booth, or enters the voting booth with any elector, except one entitled to receive such assistance in the preparation of his ballot, or permits any person, other than a voter who has not voted, or a watcher to come within the guard rail or removes or permits another to remove any mark placed upon a ballot for its identification; or,

11. Being an officer, clerk or employee of the board of elections, election inspector, poll clerk or election coordinator, knowingly puts opposite the name of an elector in an enrollment book any enrollment number other than the number opposite such name in the registration poll records of such district, or knowingly delivers to or receives from any elector on the day of registration an enrollment blank or envelope on which is any other enrollment number than the one opposite his name in such registration poll records or knowingly transcribes from an enrollment blank to the enrollment books any refusal to enroll or enrollment not indicated on the enrollment blank of the elector of such district whose enrollment number appears on such enrollment blank, or refuses or wilfully neglects to transcribe from any enrollment blank to the proper enrollment books any refusal to enroll or enrollment indicated on the enrollment blank of such an elector, enrolls or attempts to enroll as a member of a political party upon any of the enrollment books, any person not qualified to enroll as such, or fraudulently enters thereupon the name of any person who has not enrolled as a member of any political party, or refuses or wilfully neglects to enroll upon any of the enrollment books the name of any qualified person who has demanded to be enrolled as a member of a political party, or at any time strikes from any of the enrollment books the name of any person duly enrolled, or at any time adds to any of the enrollment books the name of any person not qualified to be enrolled as a member of a political party, or the name of any person who in fact has not enrolled as such; or makes marks upon, mutilates, carries away, conceals, alters, or destroys any enrollment blank or enrollment envelope used or deposited by an elector on a day of registration for the purpose of enrolling or refusing to enroll himself as a member of a political party; or mutilates, carries away, conceals, alters or destroys, any statement or declaration made by a qualified voter for the purpose of enrolling as a member of the party; or, prior to the close of the last meeting for registration in any year, mutilates, carries away, conceals, alters, or destroys any enrollment blanks or enrollment envelopes not then delivered to electors; or,

12. Being an officer, teller, canvasser, election inspector, clerk or employee of the board of elections or any officer of a political committee or a convention, wilfully omits, refuses or neglects to do any act required by this chapter or otherwise by law, or violates any of the provisions of the election law, or makes or attempts to make any false canvass of the ballots cast at a primary election, caucus or convention, or a false statement of the result of a canvass of the ballots cast thereat; or,

13. Being an officer, clerk or employee of the board of elections, or an officer of a political committee or a convention, who is charged with, or assumes, the duty of compiling the roll of any convention, wilfully includes in such roll the name of any person not certified to be elected thereto in accordance with the provisions of law, or who wilfully omits from such roll the name of any person who is so certified to be a delegate to such convention, is guilty of a misdemeanor.


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