Voting Information

The word “vote” in black letters with the letter “o” as a blue wheelchair symbol

People with disabilities in New York State have several options for safe and secure voting:

  • Vote at your polling place on Election Day, November 3. 2020.

  • Vote on a day and time of your choice during the Early Voting period, October 24 - November 1 at your county’s Early Voting site.

  • Vote by Absentee Ballot, available with no justification required, and mailed in or delivered in person.

Please note that otherwise eligible New Yorkers are eligible to register and vote, at accessible polling places, using accessible methods that ensure a private, secret ballot, regardless of disability. Certain forms of legal guardianship may bar you from voting, but people under guardianship who wish to vote can seek to regain their right to vote through a legal process. Also, although all disabled voters have a legal right to an accessible, independent vote, you may if you wish have help from someone you trust in reading your ballot and casting your vote.

Important dates related to registration and voting:

Click here for a list of early voting dates, times, and locations in Clinton, Essex, and Franklin Counties, New York

October 9

  • Last day for postmarked and in-person voter registration for the November 3 General Election.

October 14

  • Changes of address for General Election.

October 24 - November 1

  • Early voting - Check with your county’s Board of Elections for each day’s times.

October 27

  • Last day to postmark application for Absentee Ballot.

November 2

  • Last day to apply in person for Absentee Ballot.

November 3

  • Election Day

  • Last day to deliver Absentee Ballot in person.

  • Last day to postmark Absentee Ballot.

Links to other voting information and resources

New York State Board of Elections

Election Protection Hotlines

Election Ballot Information for Clinton, Essex, and Franklin Counties, New York

Check your Registration and Polling Place

Accessible Electronic Absentee Ballot Application

2020 Voting - State Voting Guides from the American Association of People with Disabilities

#CripTheVote: Presidential Candidate Disability Policies

American Association of People with Disabilities: Voting in the 202 Elections

Video from Rooted In Rights on the right to have assistance at the polls

Plain Language guide to voting, from The Arc

Plan Language guide to voting, from the Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Voting under guardianship

County Boards of Elections:

Clinton County Board of Elections - Phone: 518-565-4740

Essex Board of Elections - Phone: 518-873-3474

Franklin Board of Elections - Phone: 518-481-1663

Access To Voting In The June 23 New York Primary

There will be two ways to vote from home in the June 23 New York Primary.

  1. All eligible voters will be sent an application for an absentee ballot. If you want one just mail back the request. Read more about this from the New York State Board of Elections here.

  2. Request an electronic ballot, if your disability makes it harder for you to complete a paper ballot without help. The flier below explains the details.

Make sure to email your request form to your county Board of Elections by June 16.

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Text of the above flier:

How To Get An Accessible Absentee Ballot

Accessible Absentee Ballots are now available for New York voters with disabilities for the June 23, 2020 Primary Election.

1. A voter who is unable to mark a paper ballot because of a disability can request an accessible absentee ballot using the request form found here: https://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/Voting/NYAccessibleElectronicAbsBallotApp.pdf. You may need to download this form to your device and open in Adobe so you can complete and send by email.

2. The voter must email their completed request form to their county BOE on or before June 16. Voters can sign the request form with text input or e-signature.

3. The county BOE will email the accessible absentee ballot to the voter as soon as possible after it receives the voter’s request form. The county BOE also mails a postage paid return envelope and oath envelope to the voter.

4. On the electronic ballot, the voter can mark their selections on the computer and print it out at home.

5. The voter must sign the oath envelope anywhere on the envelope, then put the ballot in the oath envelope. The voter must put the oath envelope in the larger envelope provided with paid postage by the county BOE. A voter must get the ballot in the mail by June 22, or hand-deliver it to the county BOE by June 23, 2020.

If you have questions about New York’s new accessible absentee ballot process, contact DRNY’s Voting Hotline at (800) 993-8982 (M-F 9am to 5pm), email PAVA@drny.org, or submit an intake here: https:/www.drny.org/intake.php.

Candidate Disability Policies

Graphic description: Election 2020 in large letters on a while background, in an American flag color arrangement

NCCI is a nonpartisan disability organization. We don’t endorse any electoral candidate or political party. However, we do strive to call the community’s attention to disability-related policy proposals and developments, so that citizens and voters, especially those with disabilities, can engage in discussion of disability issues and make their own decisions based on complete information.

As the 2020 Election campaign moves towards Election Day on November 3, 2020, we will share links to disability policies proposed by candidates for office at any level, giving equal time to all candidates that choose to put out formal proposals. We particularly invite candidates who will be on the ballot for voters in the North Country to share links to any disability policies they wish to put forward or support.

Here is a link to disability policies proposed by former Vice-President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for President:

The Biden Plan for Full Participation and Equality for People with Disabilities

At this time there are no disability policies listed on President Donald Trump’s website. We will post any that are added in the future.

National Disability Voter Registration Week

Be seen. Be heard. Be counted. AAPD Rev Up Campaign. National Disability Voter Registration Week. www.aapd.com

Monday, July 15 - Friday, July 19 is National Disability Voter Registration Week, organized by the American Association of People with Disabilities and a coalition of other disability organizations. Here is some information on this week focusing on voter registration for people with disabilities:

Facts and resources about people with disabilities and voting:

* In a study of 2018 election participation of people with disabilities, Lisa Schur and Douglas Kruse of Rutgers University report:

* 14.3 disabled people voted in the 2018 Midterm Elections. That’s an 8.5% increase over the 2014 Midterm Elections.

* Despite the recent increase, the voting rate for people with disabilities is still 4.7% lower than for non-disabled people. If disabled people voted at the same rate, there would be well over 2 million more votes from disabled people.

* Another 10.2 million voters were not themselves disabled, but had people with disabilities in their households … husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, parents. That means there were 24.5 million voters in 2018 who were either disabled or had close experience of disability issues. That’s about 20% of all votes cast in 2018 … a very significant voting bloc.

* A recent Time Magazine article discussed the growing importance of voters with disabilities in elections.

* People with any disabilities are eligible to vote, provided they meet the usual citizenship and age requirements. The right to vote can only be legally restricted by order of a Judge. If you or someone you know is under legal guardianship but would like to vote, they can explore having their right to vote restored.

* Polling places should be physically accessible, and have voting mechanisms that are accessible to blind, visually impaired, and physically impaired people. Some disabled people may, if they choose, request a mail-in absentee ballot, but that does not lessen the obligation for polling sites to be accessible.

* If transportation is an issue, and you want to vote, it’s best to make arrangements well ahead of election day.

* You may be asked to provide identification at your polling site. A driver’s license, passport, or non-driver ID will suffice.

If you have any difficulty voting, or anyone tries to prevent you from voting, call your Board of Elections: Clinton Co. 518-565-4740, Essex Co. 518-873-3474, Franklin Co. 518-481-1663.

You can learn more about checking your voter registration, and registering to vote at these links:

New York State Board Of Elections

New York Disability Vote Network

Rock The Vote Voter Registration

You can also register at the NCCI offices any time during business hours.

Action Alert: Act Now to Ensure All Voting Reforms Are Accessible To People With Disabilities!

Action Alert in large white letters on a dark red background

This Action Alert was posted today by the New York Association on Independent Living (NYAIL) ...

The legislature is planning to take up a package of voting reforms on Monday. Among the package of bills is A.780/S.1102, which would implement early voting in New York State. NYAIL strongly supports making it easier to vote by enacting voting reforms like early voting and same day and automatic voter registration, but it is critical that accessibility is prioritized in all of these proposed policies!

As written, the current bill does not ensure full accessibility to voters with disabilities during early voting. It does not require that a ballot marking device be available during early voting. In other states that already have early voting, ballot marking devices have not always been available. It is critical that the state ensure they are available in New York! Other states have not always included BMDs during early voting. This is unacceptable!

Call the Election Law Chairs and the heads of the State Senate and Assembly today and urge them to ensure full accessibility during early voting when they take up A.780/S.1102 on Monday!

Action: CALL TODAY!

  • Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins - 518-455-2585
  • Speaker of the Assembly Carl Heastie - 518-455-3791
  • Assembly Election Law Chair, Charles Lavine - 518-455-5456
  • Senate Election Law Chair, Zellnor Myrie - 518-455-2431

Say:

"I strongly support making it easier for everyone to vote by implementing early voting, automatic voter registration and same day voter registration, as long as accessibility for voters with disabilities is prioritized in all voting reforms. A.780/S.1102 does not do this. The bill does not mandate a ballot marking device, which allows people to vote privately and independently, be available during early voting. Whenever and wherever elections are held and in whatever format, the State and localities must make all voting accessible to all voters with disabilities, and having a ballot marking device at all polling locations during early voting is an essential part of full accessibility."

Voting Q & A

Large blue “VOTE” logo, in which the “O” is part of a stylized wheelchair symbol’s wheel

How do I check my registration and register to vote? What is the deadline?

Click here for a website where you can check your registration status, and register to vote online in New York State. You can also register at most government offices, and at most human services agencies, including here at the North Country Center for Independence. Call us at 518-563-9058 if you want to register and need assistance.

- The voter registration deadline in New York is Friday, October 12 for the 2018 Midterms on November 6. Click here to see the registration deadlines in all 50 states.
Photo of several red, white, and blue buttons reading "VOTE"
I don't drive or have a car. How am I supposed to get to the polls?

- The first step is to make sure you know exactly where your polling place is. Click here for a website where you can find out.

- Is it close enough to walk or wheel to? Could you afford to take a cab, just that once, to cast your vote? Call your county transportation department and ask if there is wheelchair-accessible transportation that can take you to and from the polls. You can also call your local Democratic or Republican Party, (whichever you prefer), and ask if they can help you get to the polls.

- If getting to the polls is going to be difficult in any way, it’s best to plan as far ahead as possible so you can make arrangements.

Why is polling place accessibility important? Can't disabled people just vote absentee?

- In NYS, most people with disabilities can get an absentee ballot if they want one. This allows you to cast your vote by mail. And absentee votes are just as valid and counted as votes cast at the polls. Click here for more information on voting by absentee ballot in New York State.

- However, many people prefer to go to their local polling place to vote, the way most voters do, and they have a right to do so. People with disabilities also have an equal right to an accessible polling place where they can independently and privately cast their ballot. All polling places in New York State should have a way for people with mobility, motor, visual, or hearing disabilities to cast their vote.

- If you choose to have someone help you with the voting process, you may. But you cannot be forced by someone else into having help to vote.

Aren't there certain kinds of disabilities that make it impossible or inappropriate to vote?

- In the United States, you don't have to demonstrate any particular level of knowledge or understanding to be eligible to vote. You just have to be a United States citizen and 18 years old or over. That applies to everyone, including people with all kinds of disabilities.

- NYS Law allows judges to rule a person with cognitive disabilities ineligible to vote when it is part of a legal guardianship. However, it is not an automatic part of every guardianship, it can be reversed and voting allowed if appealed, and in general, people have a right to register regardless of their disabilities unless specifically deemed ineligible by a judge.

- The vast majority of people with disabilities are as capable as anyone else of making their own voting decisions.

I don't know much about politics. Wouldn't it be kind of wrong for me to vote?

- One of the core principles of democracy is that you don't have to have a certain level of knowledge or intelligence to have a meaningful right to vote. If your vote isn't especially informed, and cast more on instinct, it is still valuable, and your insights are no better or worse than those of other voters.

- That said, if you feel like you would like to be more knowledgeable, you can change that. You can start by visiting websites about the 2018 Midterm Elections, and then visiting the websites of candidates who will be on your ballot.
Red white and blue sign reading "VOTE!"
Why is it important for people with disabilities to vote?

- People with disabilities are a potentially huge voting constituency. Almost 16 million people with disabilities voted in 2016. Recently, major elections have come down to thousands of votes. In local races, hundreds or even handfuls of votes can make the difference.

- In 2016, 68.3% of voting age people with disabilities were registered to vote, compared to 70.6% of non-disabled people, a 2.3% gap. 82% of registered disabled voters actually voted, compared with 88% of non-disabled registered voters, a 6% gap. (Source: Lisa Schur and Douglas Kruse, Fact sheet: Disability and Voter Turnout in the 2016 Elections).

- Just about all disability-related policy is affected by who is elected to Congress, state legislatures, counties, towns, and village offices … including the scope, quality, and funding of Medicaid and Medicare, Social Security, SNAP and housing assistance, home care, developmental disability services, independent living centers, and civil rights laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

- Who knows better how these and other disability programs should be designed and implemented. Very few lawmakers really know the disability experience. They rely on us not just for our votes, but for our everyday expertise on disability issues. We have the numbers and the knowledge to make a difference. But potential alone doesn’t do anything. First we have to follow through and vote.

The National Council on Independent Living has resources for voters with disabilities. Click here to visit their page.

You can also check an analysis of the races for Congress, every day from now until election day, at these FiveThirtyEight.com pages: Senate Forecast - House Forecast.

If you are looking for information on current disability issues, visit the following websites:

2018 NCIL Legislative & Advocacy Priorities Booklet