New York Laws
Part 1 - General Provisions
2019-A - Voting by Persons Whose Names Are Not in the Registration Poll Ledgers.

§ 2019-a. Voting by persons whose names are not in the registration
poll ledgers. 1. Whenever a voter presents himself and offers to cast a
ballot at any school district meeting or election, and the address at
which he claims to live is in the election district in which he seeks to
vote but his name cannot be found on the list of registered voters or in
the registration poll ledger, he shall be permitted to vote only as
hereinafter provided:

a. He may present a court order requiring that he be permitted to
vote. He shall be required to sign his full name on top of the first
page of such order, together with his registration serial number, if
any. The voter shall then be permitted to vote in the manner otherwise
prescribed for voters whose names are found on the registration lists,
whose registration poll records are found in the ledger; or

b. He may request, swear to and subscribe an affidavit stating that he
has duly registered to vote, the address in such election district from
which he registered, that he remains a duly qualified voter in such
election district and that his registration poll record appears to be
lost or misplaced, or that his name has been incorrectly omitted from
the list of registered voters. Such affidavit shall be printed on an
envelope and shall contain an acknowledgement that the affiant
understands that any false statement made therein is perjury punishable
according to law. The voter shall then be permitted to vote a paper
ballot. Such ballot shall thereupon be placed in the envelope containing
his affidavit, and the envelope sealed and returned to the board of
education with other records of the meeting or election.

2. a. Before certifying the result of any school district meeting or
election at which voters are required to sign their registration poll
records or the list of registered voters before voting, the board of
education shall proceed in the manner hereinafter prescribed to cast and
canvass any ballots voted by voters whose registration poll records were
missing or whose names did not appear on the list of registered voters
on the day of such meeting or election. Each such ballot shall be
retained in the original envelope containing the voter's affidavit and
signature, in which it is delivered to the board of education until such
time as it is to be cast and canvassed.

b. The board of education shall designate itself or such of its
employees as it shall deem appropriate as a set of poll clerks to cast
and canvass such ballots, and fix a time and place for their meeting for
such purposes, provided that such meeting shall be no more than ten days
after any election at which such ballots are voted. The board may
designate additional sets of poll clerks and if it designates more than
one such set, shall apportion among all such sets the election districts
from which such ballots have been received, provided that all such
ballots from a single election district shall be assigned to a single
set of clerks. Each such set of clerks shall be deemed a central board
of inspectors for purposes of this section.

c. At least five days prior to the time fixed for such meeting, the
board shall send notice by first class mail to each candidate entitled
to have had watchers or challengers present at the polls in any election
district from which any such ballot has been received, or, if such
notice is sent prior to the day of the election, to each such candidate
so entitled for each election district in the board's jurisdiction. Such
notice shall state the time and place fixed by the board for such
canvass.

d. Each such candidate shall be entitled to appoint such number of
watchers or challengers to attend upon each central board of inspectors
as such candidate was entitled to appoint at such election in any one

election district for which such central board of inspectors is
designated to act.

3. Upon assembling at the time and place fixed for such meeting, each
central board of inspectors shall consider each affidavit envelope and
ballot from the election districts assigned to it.

a. First, the central board of inspectors shall reject any ballot not
found sealed in the envelope in which it was placed at the polling
place, second the ballot of any voter for whom there is no registration
poll record or central registration record in the office of the board of
elections.

b. The central board of inspectors shall then proceed to consider,
cast, and canvass the remaining envelopes and the ballots therein
contained as nearly as practicable in the manner provided by this
chapter for a board of inspectors to consider, cast, and canvass paper
ballots at school district meetings or elections.

c. Any person lawfully present may object to the refusal to cast or
canvass any ballot on the grounds that the voter is a properly qualified
voter of the election district, or to the casting or canvassing of any
ballot on the grounds that the voter is not a properly qualified voter
of the election district, or otherwise not entitled to cast such ballot.
When any such objection is made, the board of education shall forthwith
proceed to determine such objection and reject or cast such ballot
according to such determination.

d. Upon completing the casting and canvassing of ballots as
hereinabove provided for any election district, the central board of
inspectors shall thereupon, as nearly as practicable in the manner
provided in this section, verify the number of ballots so cast, tally
the votes so cast, add such tally to the previous tally of all votes
cast in such election district, and announce the result.

4. Whenever the ballot of any person, voted in an affidavit envelope
in the manner prescribed by this section, is rejected under the
provisions of this section on the grounds that such person is not a
qualified voter of the election district wherein he sought to vote, the
board of education shall immediately notify such person by first class
mail directed to the address given in his affidavit, of the rejection of
his ballot, together with the reason therefor and the appropriate
information on the times and places where he may register or reregister.
Where appropriate, a form of application for personal registration by
mail pursuant to the election law shall be included with such notice.