Three ways to vote in New York

 “It is better to vote for what you want and not get it than to vote for what you don't want and get it.”

—Eugene V. Debs

 

By Alex P. Vidal 

 

ALTHOUGH we have been informed that the U.S. Presidential Election will be on November 3, there are actually three ways to vote here in New York.

Minnesota, South Dakota, Virginia and Wyoming, meanwhile, were the first four states to begin voting on September 19, where lines of voters were reportedly stretched from polling places especially in Virginia and Minnesota as election workers scrambled to open an additional voting room at the county government centre.

In New York this year, registered voters can vote three ways: By absentee ballot, in-person early voting, or in-person voting on Election Day, November 3, 2020.

All registered voters can request an absentee ballot if they are concerned about COVID-19 for the November 3 election. 

Some New Yorkers will start to vote early on October 24, Saturday, until November 1, Sunday. 

The dates and hours may vary based on where the voters live.

Those who wish to vote by mail will request ballots by October 27, while those who want to vote on election day will go to the polling centers on November 3 starting at six o’clock in the morning until nine o’clock in the evening.

Voters will be given the last day to request an absentee ballot online, via email or fax on October 27.

If voters are sending the application request via regular mail, it must be postmarked no later than October 27. The last day to request an absentee ballot in-person will be on November 2.

 

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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had earlier signed three new laws that provide voters with greater flexibility on casting their ballots this November and assurance that they will be counted.

There have been concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on voting, prompting state lawmakers to introduce reforms to make it easier for voters to request absentee ballots and ensure that they are included in the final vote tallies.

On Aug. 20, after passing the State Legislature, Cuomo signed into law the legislative package which relaxes absentee ballot rules so voters may request them due to risk of illness; enables voters to request absentee ballots immediately; and validates all ballots postmarked up to and including Election Day, Nov. 3, for the final vote count.

Part of Cuomo’s motivation for approving the legislation was the crisis at the United States Postal Service, in which mailboxes and sorting machines have been removed earlier. 

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who had ordered the removals, has since said he would forego those measures until after the election.

 

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AMNY has reported that the removals occurred around the same time that President Donald Trump announced said that slowing the USPS’ operations would ensure that mail-in ballots across the country would not be counted in time for the election. 

The president has since attempted to walk those comments back.

Despite his prior remarks about fraud in mailed voting (without providing evidence), Mr. Trump is nonetheless voting by absentee mailed ballot himself, according to AMNY.

Cuomo had said, as reported by AMNY: “The federal administration has ordered an unprecedented attack on the U.S. Postal Service and with COVID-19 threatening our ability to have safe, in-person voting, these measures are critical to ensuring a successful and fair election at one of the most important moments in our nation’s history.”

The governor added: “These actions will further break down barriers to democracy and will make it easier for all New Yorkers to exercise their right to vote this November.”

A post office snafu prevented hundreds of mailed ballots from being postmarked, and the New York City Board of Elections initially refused to count them. 

That led to a court case in which a judge eventually allowed the ballots to be counted.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo)