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This entry was published on 2023-09-22
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SECTION 2-122-B
Presidential primary
Election (ELN) CHAPTER 17, ARTICLE 2
* § 2-122-b. Presidential primary. 1. Applicability. The selection of
delegates and alternate delegates from New York state to the national
convention of the Republican party in each year in which electors of
president and vice-president of the United States are to be elected
shall be conducted pursuant to the provisions of this section. The state
committee of any other political party may, by rule or resolution, opt
to conduct the selection of delegates and alternate delegates in any
such year in accordance with the provisions of this section. A certified
copy of such rule or resolution shall be filed with the state board of
elections no later than twenty weeks prior to the date of such election.

2. General provisions. The awarding of delegates and alternate
delegates to a national convention or conference of a political party
pursuant to this section shall be determined by the votes cast at a
statewide primary election for candidates for the office of president of
the United States in which the names of candidates for such office
appear on the ballot and the names of delegates and alternate delegates
do not appear on such ballot. The total number of delegates and
alternate delegates shall be determined by the call for the national
convention. Three delegates and three alternate delegates shall be
awarded from every congressional district in the state, unless the rules
of the national Republican party and/or the call for the national
convention provide differently. The total number of delegates and
alternate delegates as established by the call for the national
convention minus the number of delegates and alternate delegates to be
awarded from the congressional districts shall be designated at-large
delegates and at-large alternate delegates.

A political party shall certify to the state board of elections, at
least sixteen weeks prior to the date of the presidential primary, the
number of delegates to which such party is entitled pursuant to its
rules.

Congressional district delegates and alternate delegates shall be
awarded based upon the results of separate and distinct primary
elections held within each congressional district of the state.
Congressional district delegates and alternate delegates shall be
awarded to presidential candidates pursuant to paragraph b of
subdivision four of this section and elected pursuant to paragraph c of
subdivision four of this section. At-large delegates and alternate
delegates shall be elected by the state committee and allocated to
presidential candidates pursuant to subdivision five of this section.

3. Ballot access methods. Candidates shall be eligible to appear on
the ballot in a primary election of a political party for the office of
president of the United States pursuant to any of the following
provisions:

a. Any candidate who has been certified as eligible to receive
presidential primary matching fund payments pursuant to the provisions
of 11 Code of Federal Regulations Part 9033, or any candidate who meets
the eligibility criteria regarding matchable contributions established
in 11 Code of Federal Regulations Part 9033.2(b)(3) regardless of
whether such candidate actually applied for such matching fund payments,
may request, by certificate filed and received by the state board of
elections no sooner than sixteen weeks and not later than nine weeks
prior to the date of the presidential primary, that the name of such
candidate appear on the ballot at the primary of such party in the state
of New York for that year.

b. Any candidate may request, by certificate filed and received by the
state board of elections no sooner than sixteen weeks and not later than
nine weeks prior to the date of the presidential primary, that the name
of such candidate appear on the ballot at the primary of such party in
the state of New York for the office of president of the United States.
Such candidate shall be eligible to appear on the ballot of such party
in the state of New York at the primary election for that year if the
state board of elections determines that the person is a nationally
known and recognized candidate and the candidacy of such person for the
party nomination for president is generally and seriously advocated or
recognized according to reports in the national or state news media.
Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law to the contrary, a
request by a candidate to appear on the presidential primary ballot of a
major political party shall be determined solely upon a joint
recommendation by the commissioners of the state board of elections who
have been appointed on the recommendation of such political party or the
legislative leaders of such political party, and no other commissioner
of the state board of elections shall participate in such determination.
The state board of elections shall act upon any such request no later
than fifty-six days before the presidential primary.

c. Any candidate shall be eligible to appear on the ballot pursuant to
the provisions of article six of this chapter. Designating petitions
shall be signed by not less than five thousand or five percent,
whichever is less, of the then enrolled voters of the party in the
state.

d. Presidential candidates determined eligible to appear on the
primary ballot may have their name removed from such primary ballot by
filing a certificate with the state board of elections and received no
later than fifty-six days before such primary election. After such date
but before the seventh day before the primary, presidential candidates
may file a certificate with the state board of elections deeming any
vote for such presidential candidate to be a void vote.

4. Election of delegates and alternate delegates from congressional
districts. a. Each congressional district shall conduct a separate and
distinct primary election. Enrolled Republican voters from a
congressional district shall vote for a presidential candidate who has
qualified for the primary ballot pursuant to subdivision three of this
section.

b. All three delegates and all three alternate delegates from a
congressional district shall be awarded to a presidential candidate who
receives a majority of the total votes cast for presidential candidates
in such congressional district. If no presidential candidate receives a
majority of the votes in a congressional district, the presidential
candidate receiving the most votes in the congressional district shall
be awarded two delegates and two alternate delegates and the
presidential candidate who receives the second most votes in the
congressional district shall be awarded one delegate and one alternate
delegate, provided however, that a presidential candidate must receive
at least twenty percent of the total votes cast for presidential
candidates in the congressional district in order to be awarded any
delegates and alternate delegates from that congressional district. If
only one presidential candidate receives twenty percent or more of the
total votes cast for presidential candidates in a congressional
district, such presidential candidate shall be awarded all three
delegates and all three alternate delegates. If no presidential
candidate receives twenty percent or more of the total votes cast for
presidential candidates in a congressional district, the three delegate
and three alternate delegate positions from such district shall be
deemed vacant and filled pursuant to the rules of the national
Republican party.

c. All congressional district delegates and alternate delegates shall
be elected by the members of the New York Republican state committee
representing each such congressional district and awarded to
presidential candidates pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivision. The
congressional district delegates and alternate delegates shall be
elected by the members of the New York Republican state committee
representing each such congressional district at meetings called by the
state chairman and scheduled in compliance with Rules 16 and 20 of the
Rules of the Republican Party (National) but, if practicable, following
the certification of the results of the presidential primary by the New
York state board of elections. The notices of call issued by the state
chairman shall designate New York Republican state committee members to
serve as chairs and secretaries of the congressional district meetings.
At these congressional district meetings, the members of the New York
Republican state committee shall each cast votes equal to the Republican
enrollment for their unit of representation that is within the
congressional district. Voting by proxy at the congressional district
meeting shall be valid. The chair and secretary of each congressional
district meeting shall file a certificate with the New York state board
of elections stating the names and addresses of the individuals elected
as congressional district delegates and alternate delegates within five
days of the meeting.

5. Election of at-large delegates and at-large alternate delegates.
At-large delegates and at-large alternate delegates shall be selected by
the New York Republican state committee and awarded to presidential
candidates based upon the statewide vote results of the presidential
primary election. All at-large delegates and at-large alternate
delegates shall be awarded to the presidential candidate who receives a
majority of the statewide total votes cast for presidential candidates.
If no presidential candidate receives a majority of the statewide total
votes cast for presidential candidates, at-large delegates and at-large
alternate delegates shall be allocated and awarded as follows: based on
the ratio of the total statewide vote received by each presidential
candidate in relation to the total statewide vote for all presidential
candidates receiving at least twenty percent of the statewide vote in
the presidential primary election, the New York Republican state
committee shall apportion pro-rata the number of at-large delegates and
at-large alternate delegates that each presidential candidate is
entitled to receive rounded to the nearest whole number: provided
however, that a presidential candidate must receive at least twenty
percent of the total statewide vote of the presidential primary election
in order to be awarded any at-large delegates by the New York Republican
state committee. In the event the pro-rata apportionment of delegates
leaves one or more delegates unawarded by process of mathematical
distribution, then any such delegate or delegates, shall be awarded to
the presidential candidate with the most statewide votes for all
presidential candidates. In the event pro-rata apportionment entitles
presidential candidates by process of mathematical distribution to more
delegates than are authorized pursuant to the rules of the national
Republican party and the call for the national convention, then the
number of delegates awarded for the candidate receiving the least
statewide votes among those presidential candidates otherwise entitled
to be awarded delegates, shall be decreased to the extent necessary to
conform to the number of authorized delegate positions.

6. All provisions of this chapter which are not inconsistent with this
section shall be applicable to a primary election conducted pursuant to
this section.

* NB Repealed December 31, 2024