What Can You Do To Make Elections Even Safer And More Accessible For NYS Voters?

There are a series of bills before the NYS Legislature this session that will expand voting rights and access for New Yorkers. Call your elected representatives in Albany today and urge them to pass these bills before the November 2026 midterms!

Calls are more effective than emails and you don’t have to be an expert on any of these bills to share your opinion. Make sure to give your name, your address, and ask for a response in writing. It’s okay to leave a message if you get voicemail.

If you don’t know who your representatives are, or if you don’t have their contact information: https://elections.ny.gov/new-york-state-elected-officials

Summaries of the NYS Voter Protection Bills:

1) Assembly Bill 5846A/Senate Bill 4602
The Time Extender Remedy for Significant Election Disruption Bill would allow Boards of Elections to extend time for balloting at specific impacted polling places where an emergency or disruption lasts longer than fifteen minutes.

Presently, Boards are eligible to schedule an additional day of voting due to specific listed events and when less than a quarter of registered voters countywide have already cast a ballot. This leaves rural polling sites and smaller communities at a disadvantage, as they may be more prone to flooding and power outages, two instances that are not presently eligible reasons for an additional day of voting.

Further, requiring a second day of ballot casting, hiring and training poll inspectors, and other logistics of running an election is far more expensive than simply allowing the Board of Elections to extend voting hours to account for time lost in these events.

2) Assembly Bill 6354/Senate Bill 3233A
The purpose of this bill is to deter frivolous challenges to voter qualifications made by those not holding elected office. Challenges to voter qualifications often target poorer communities, student populations, and people of color in order to prevent them from exercising their right to vote.

If passed, this would require a person seeking to challenge a voter’s qualification to sign an affidavit that includes specific reasoning and proof supporting their belief that the voter in question lacks the specific requirements to be eligible to vote.

3) Assembly Bill 3954A/Senate Bill 2056A
The Student Voter Empowerment Act would require all institutions of higher education to designate a member of the staff to serve as a student voting coordinator. This staff member would develop and implement a plan to increase voter registration and encourage participation, as well as provide information on absentee ballots and registration forms on their campus website.

New York State’s youth voter turnout remains well below the national average, with only 20.7 percent of eligible young voters casting a ballot in 2022. Setting a pattern of participating in the democratic process at a young age sets the tone for being an active voter throughout the rest of their lives.

4) Assembly Bill 2121/Senate Bill 440
The Democracy During Detention Act would ensure that incarcerated New Yorkers remain eligible to register to vote and cast their ballot at correctional facilities and jails.

Under the New York State Constitution, those who are awaiting trial and have been convicted of a misdemeanor are eligible to vote, but in reality these New Yorkers still face significant hurdles to do so. This legislation would ensure that incarcerated New Yorkers have adequate access to absentee ballots and provides a process for setting up polling places in correctional facilities. Presently, access to resources such as absentee ballots and Boards of Election is not standardized and varies by facility.

Through the creation of a uniform process, incarcerated New Yorkers can better understand their rights and participate in our democracy.