NY State Senator Kristen Gonzalez Introduces Elections Bill to Strengthen Early Voting

ALBANY — New York State Senator Kristen Gonzalez (D-59) introduced S6995 today, legislation to harmonize New York’s vote-by-mail process and improve procedures for military and special federal voters. The legislation builds on the success of New York’s 2023 Early Voter Mail Act, reducing administrative burdens on county boards of elections (BOEs) and improving voting accessibility for millions of New York voters, especially overseas and military voters. The legislation is particularly timely given President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on elections, which seeks to make it more difficult for members of the military and their families as well as other U.S. citizens living abroad to participate in elections.

“This bill is about ensuring that every eligible New Yorker has an opportunity to make their voice heard in elections that are efficient, secure, and accessible,” said Senator Kristen Gonzalez. “I’m proud to introduce legislation uplifting election integrity, and I call on my colleagues to move this commonsense legislation forward, so we can continue striving towards a truly effective and representative democracy.”

“This legislation from Senator Gonzalez is what responsive elections policy is all about: making processes more efficient for election officials and more convenient for eligible voters,” said Sam Oliker-Friedland, executive director of Institute for Responsive Government Action. “We thank Sen. Gonzalez for her leadership, and we encourage the New York State Legislature to act on this smart opportunity – and other critical opportunities like Enhanced Automatic Voter Registration (S88/A6772) – to ultimately strengthen the state’s elections infrastructure, enhance election security, and make voting more accessible for millions of New Yorkers.”

Among a number of provisions, S6995 would:

• Allow BOEs to use the same envelopes for both early mail and absentee ballots;

• Allow military and overseas voter registration applications and requests for mail ballots – which currently must be submitted by postal mail or in-person – to be submitted by e-mail, fax, or another electronic mechanism set up by the State Board;

• Allow a registered voter to apply to receive early mail ballots for all elections in an election cycle, compared to current law which allows requests to be good for a single calendar year;

• Have absentee ballots that do not provide a reason that the applicant is entitled to an absentee ballot processed as applications for an early mail ballot; and,

• Create a permanent absentee system for military and overseas voters, allowing them to keep receiving ballots until their registration is inactivated or cancelled, they move back to the U.S., or they request otherwise. Under current law, military and overseas voters receive ballots for four years and then must renew their requests.

In 2023, New York adopted the Early Mail Voter Act, which recognized that the legislature had the authority to create a method of mail voting available to all registered voters, in parallel with New York’s long standing procedures for absentee voting by people who are ill, disabled, or out of town on election day. With this law, New York joined 37 other states in offering a vote-by-mail option to all registered voters. Senator Gonzalez’s new bill, S6995 makes minor improvements to the early mail voting process to ease administration for election officials and to improve convenience for voters.