Provides that a qualified voter may receive an absentee ballot if such voter is unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election district in which such individual is a qualified voter because of a religious observance or practice.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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5346
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 20, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to authorizing absentee
voting for religious observance
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 8-400 of the election law, as
2 amended by chapter 63 of the laws of 2010 and paragraph (c) as amended
3 by chapter 375 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
4 1. A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this chapter
5 if, on the occurrence of any village election conducted by the board of
6 elections, primary election, special election, general election or New
7 York city community school board district or city of Buffalo school
8 district election, [he or she] such person expects to be:
9 (a) absent from the county of [his or her] residence, or, if a resi-
10 dent of the city of New York absent from said city; or
11 (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election
12 district in which [he or she] such person is a qualified voter because
13 of illness or physical disability or duties related to the primary care
14 of one or more individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or
15 because [he or she] such person will be or is a patient in a hospital;
16 or
17 (c) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration hospi-
18 tal; or
19 (d) absent from [his or her] their voting residence because [he or
20 she] such person is detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or
21 awaiting trial, or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an
22 offense other than a felony, provided that [he or she] such person is
23 qualified to vote in the election district of [his or her] residence[.];
24 or
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02980-01-5
S. 5346 2
1 (e) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election
2 district in which such person is a qualified voter because of a reli-
3 gious observance or practice.
4 § 2. This act shall take effect January 1, 2026 and shall apply to any
5 general, primary, run-off primary, or special election held thereafter.
