New York Absentee Ballot Violations

Lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) against the state of New York for its failure to provide uniformed and overseas voters with adequate time to receive and fill out their absentee ballots. Under the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), states must follow a mandated timeline to ensure that uniformed and overseas voters receive their absentee ballots in time to complete and mail them back to be counted. For the 2010 federal election, the DOJ alleged that nine New York counties failed to send absentee ballots to UOCAVA voters in time. As a result of this lawsuit, a permanent injunction was entered mandating the timing of New York’s non-presidential federal primaries, specifically that the state must hold non-presidential federal primaries on “the fourth Tuesday in June.” This permanent injunction and how it relates to the timing of congressional primaries became a focal point in an impasse lawsuit, de Gaudemar v. Kosinski. The New York State Board of Elections sought permission from the judge to move the congressional primary for 2022 to provide the state trial judge presiding over Harkenrider v. Hochul adequate time to redraw congressional districts. The judge approved the August 2022 primaries.

Last updated: May 10, 2022 2:10 pm EST