New York’s Elections: Make Your Voice Heard

Check out these important registration and voting deadlines for upcoming elections from the New York State Board of Elections. The New York State Board of Elections website has further information about dates and deadlines for voter registration, absentee voting, and early voting.

Use NYPIRG's Representative Finder to find your elected officials and get their contact information, and check out our Legislative Profiles for information about your representatives in Albany.

NYPIRG’s nonpartisan voter mobilization project is committed to promoting political participation, safeguarding voter rights, and ensuring access to voter polls – whether by mail or in person – for all eligible New Yorkers.

Be ready for upcoming elections:

Check your registration status.
Make a voting plan – via absentee ballot (mail-in), during early voting, or at the polls on Election Day.

Check Your Registration Status and Find Your Poll Site

Check your voter registration status to verify that you are registered and make sure that your voter information is updated and accurate. If you recently registered, or updated your registration, changes may take a few weeks to appear on the website.
If your registration status is found, you can also look up your poll site for both the early voting period and for Election Day. Your poll site for early voting may be different than your poll site on Election Day. Poll sites and hours of operation vary by county for early voting.
In New York State, you must be registered with a party in order to vote in that party’s Primary Election. All registered voters are eligible to vote in the November Election, and you may vote for whichever candidate you want, regardless of party affiliation.
You can also contact your county Board of Elections to ensure that you are registered.

Make a Voting Plan

Once you are registered to vote, how do you want to cast your ballot? This year, New York voters can choose between these three options:

1. Voting in person during the early voting period:

You can avoid longer lines and skip the post office by casting your ballot during New York's early voting period. Look up your early voting poll site here.
Every county must have at least one early voting poll site.

2. Voting in person on Election Day:

You can go to the polls on Election Day and cast your ballot.

*Your assigned early voting poll site may not be the same location as your Election Day poll site. Look up your poll sites for early voting and for Election Day.

3. Voting by mail using an absentee ballot:

You can download an absentee ballot application (in English or Spanish), and get additional information and instructions, from the New York State Board of Elections absentee voting webpage.
Or you can apply for an absentee ballot by visiting or contacting your county Board of Elections.
Once your application is accepted, you will receive a hard-copy ballot through the mail.
You can then complete your ballot and drop it off or mail it in.
If mailed in, your ballot must be postmarked no later than Election Day. All absentee ballot return envelopes should have postage paid already. You should not need to add stamps. Contact your local Board of Elections if your absentee ballot return envelope is missing the postage paid mark.
Your ballot can also be dropped off at an early voting poll site during the early voting period, or at an Election Day poll site on Election Day. Look up poll sites for early voting and for Election Day.
If you are a New York City voter, you can track your absentee ballot application.

USPS recommends that voters mail their absentee ballot about seven days ahead of the election. All absentee ballots must be postmarked by Election Day.

You can still vote in person if you requested an absentee ballot, but you must use an affidavit ballot at your poll site. If you requested an absentee ballot, you should plan to vote with it by mailing it in or dropping it off in person (details above). However, if you requested an absentee ballot but would like to vote in person instead, you will have to vote with an affidavit ballot at your poll site (a paper ballot that is not scanned in a machine and is canvassed afterwards).

Voter Links & Resources

NYPIRG Voter Bill of Rights Factsheet

Filling Out a Voter Registration Form: A NYPIRG Step-By-Step Guide

Find out where I vote

Learn more about my state representatives

Learn more about how state government works

Research donations made to political campaigns

Research money spent to lobby our government

New York State Board of Elections

Key New York State Voting Dates and Deadlines

NYPIRG's Representative Finder

NYPIRG's Legislative Profiles

Our Impact

Over the past four decades, NYPIRG’s non-partisan voter mobilization campaign has guarded and fought to expand the rights of voters in New York through community outreach, advocacy, media work and litigation. Our work has resulted in:

Thousands of new voters registered every year.
Expansion of absentee voting, particularly during the pandemic.
An expansion to the state’s “Motor Voter” law, which requires all state agencies to offer a voter registration option at the point of using the agency.
Sample ballots available online to help familiarize voters and speed up election day lines.
Inclusion of email addresses on New York City voter registration forms.

NYPIRG supports voter reforms, including:

Elimination of the patronage-controlled Boards of Elections, starting with the merit selection of permanent Board employees across the state.
Improved Absentee Voting: We support no-excuse absentee ballot access. Additionally, as NYC has recently done, all local NY Boards of Election should allow voters to track their ballots – in the same way as mail delivery purchases are tracked now. This provides confidence in the system and allows for additional time to make alternative plans if needed.
Enhanced early voting participation. Since voting is a habit that must be ingrained and supported in the early years of eligibility – which coincide with typical college years – New York should cultivate this habit by supporting voting by students on campus.
Allowing voters to register and vote on Election Day.
Codifying case law with respect to students voting from a campus-area address.
Guidelines for better ballots. Poor ballot design can affect every voter at a poll site. Miniscule fonts, unnecessary graphics and unreadable directions result in spoiled ballots and longer wait times for all.
Improved poll worker performance. Voters should come first on Election Day. Unfortunately, for too many, the patronage structure of the Boards puts party loyalty first and public service second. New York can improve poll site conditions immediately by offering time off for state and city employees working the polls, and professionalizing poll worker training so that only qualified and trained staff work the polls.