Voting Q & A
If you are a registered voter enrolled in a party that is holding a primary election, you can (and should) vote on September 15th. If you are voting from your current address for the first time, you must have registered to vote and chosen a party by August 21, 2009 to be eligible; all other voters must have enrolled in a party by October 10th of last year (2008) to be eligible to vote in this year’s primary.
Fill out a voter registration form and file it in person or by mail with any of the BOE offices. You can pick up a registration form at those offices, call and request one, or download it from the BOE’s Web site, www.vote.nyc.ny.us. It is too late to register to vote for the primary election, but you have until October 9, 2009 to register for the November 3rd general election.
Your registration has no expiration date, but it may have been cancelled if you moved and did not update your address with the BOE.
When you move, New York State law requires you to change your address
with the BOE within 25 days. You do this by submitting a new voter registration form and checking the box labeled “Address change.” Fill in your new and old address, check the box for the party you wish to be enrolled in (do this even if you were already enrolled in a party), and provide any other requested information. If you moved but you didn’t change your address before August 21st, you should go to your NEW polling place and vote by affidavit ballot. The BOE can tell you whether your change of address has been processed.
The primary election determines which candidate will receive your party’s nomination for each office. You can only vote in a primary election held by the party YOU belong to. For example, if you are a registered member of the Working Families Party, you can only vote in the Working Families Party primary, not the Democratic or Republican primary.
Primary races are held when more than one candidate wants your party’s nomination and has successfully completed all the steps to get on the ballot for the primary. If only one candidate is seeking your party’s nomination, no primary is held for that office.
Primary races are held when more than one candidate wants your party’s nomination and has successfully completed all the steps to get on the ballot for the primary. If only one candidate is seeking your party’s nomination, no primary is held for that office.
First, make sure you are signing in to use the correct voting machine for your assembly and election district. These district numbers are printed on the mailing label of your Guide and on the postcard that the BOE sends to all registered voters. You can also ask a poll worker for help. You usually have to vote on one machine even though there are several voting machines at your polling site.
Once you confirm that you are signing in at the correct machine, if you are not on the poll list, it may be because the BOE did not receive your registration form. If you believe that you are eligible, you can still vote. Ask for an affidavit ballot, which is a paper ballot. Take the envelope and the ballot that the poll worker gives you to the cardboard voting booth. Complete the envelope. Mark your votes on the ballot with a pencil or a pen with blue or black ink by filling in the ovals near your choices. Remember not to make any other markings on the ballot. Fold the ballot and put it in the envelope. Seal the envelope and give it to the poll worker. After the election, the BOE will check its records and your vote will be counted if you were eligible to vote. If not, you will receive a notice that you were not eligible to vote with a registration form for future elections.
Once you confirm that you are signing in at the correct machine, if you are not on the poll list, it may be because the BOE did not receive your registration form. If you believe that you are eligible, you can still vote. Ask for an affidavit ballot, which is a paper ballot. Take the envelope and the ballot that the poll worker gives you to the cardboard voting booth. Complete the envelope. Mark your votes on the ballot with a pencil or a pen with blue or black ink by filling in the ovals near your choices. Remember not to make any other markings on the ballot. Fold the ballot and put it in the envelope. Seal the envelope and give it to the poll worker. After the election, the BOE will check its records and your vote will be counted if you were eligible to vote. If not, you will receive a notice that you were not eligible to vote with a registration form for future elections.
You can vote by absentee ballot if you are unable to get to your polling place for many reasons, such as being away at school, on vacation, or hospitalized, or if you are disabled. To vote by absentee ballot, you must fill out an absentee ballot application to obtain an absentee ballot. For this primary election, absentee ballot applications must be postmarked by September 8, 2009 or personally delivered to your local BOE office by 5:00 p.m. on September 14, 2009.
If you submit your absentee ballot application in person at your BOE borough office, you will receive your absentee ballot immediately. You can also have it mailed to you. Fill out the absentee ballot and mail it (postmarked by September 14, 2009) or hand deliver it (by 9:00 p.m. on September 15, 2009) to the BOE office in your borough.
You may be able to vote in person (“In Person Absentee Voting”) at the BOE’s office in your borough. Absentee voting in person begins as soon as the ballots are available (at least 32 days before an election) and ends the day before Election Day. Call 866-VOTE-NYC to see if it is available in your borough for this election.
If you submit your absentee ballot application in person at your BOE borough office, you will receive your absentee ballot immediately. You can also have it mailed to you. Fill out the absentee ballot and mail it (postmarked by September 14, 2009) or hand deliver it (by 9:00 p.m. on September 15, 2009) to the BOE office in your borough.
You may be able to vote in person (“In Person Absentee Voting”) at the BOE’s office in your borough. Absentee voting in person begins as soon as the ballots are available (at least 32 days before an election) and ends the day before Election Day. Call 866-VOTE-NYC to see if it is available in your borough for this election.
 |
