New York Legislature Lengthens Voter Registration Window
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Monday, Dec. 12, the New York State Legislature sent Senate Bill 2951 to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) desk for her signature. The final version of S.B. 2951, which took a circuitous route through the Legislature throughout 2021 and 2022, was passed by the state House in June. The bill would move the state’s voter registration deadline, giving voters at least 10 additional days to ensure they are properly registered. Specifically, S.B. 2951 moves the date to postmark a voter registration application from 25 to 15 days before a given election and the date for the application to be received from 20 to 10 days before an election; 10 days before an election is the latest possible date to register as permitted by the New York Constitution. New York State also has online voter registration for which the postmark deadline would not apply.
Since the Legislature is currently out of session, Hochul has 30 days to sign the bill into law. If she fails to sign the bill by then, it will effectively be vetoed.