N.Y. Elec. Law § 9-209

§ 9-209. Canvass of absentee, military and special ballots and ballots\ncast by voters with registration poll records missing on days of\nelection or voters who have not had their identity previously verified\nor who have moved after registering. Before completing the canvass of\nvotes cast in any primary, general, special, or other election at which\nvoters are required to sign their registration poll records before\nvoting, the board of elections shall proceed in the manner hereinafter\nprescribed to cast and canvass any absentee, military, special\npresidential, special federal or other special ballots and any ballots\nvoted by voters who moved within the county or city after registering,\nvoters who are in inactive status, voters whose registration was\nincorrectly transferred to another address even though they did not\nmove, voters whose registration poll records were missing on the day of\nsuch election, voters who have not had their identity previously\nverified and voters whose registration poll records did not show them to\nbe enrolled in the party in which they claimed to be enrolled. Each such\nballot shall be retained in the original envelope containing the voter's\naffidavit and signature, in which it is delivered to the board of\nelections until such time as it is to be cast and canvassed.\n 1. (a) The board of elections shall designate itself or such of its\nemployees as it shall deem appropriate as a set of poll clerks to cast\nand canvass such ballots, and fix a time and place for their meeting for\nsuch purpose, provided that such meeting shall be no more than fourteen\ndays after a general or special election and no more than eight days\nafter a primary election at which such ballots are voted. The board may\ndesignate additional sets of poll clerks and if it designates more than\none such set shall apportion among all such sets the election districts\nfrom which such ballots have been received, provided that all such\nballots from a single election district shall be assigned to a single\nset of clerks, and that each such set shall be divided equally between\nrepresentatives of the two major political parties. Each such set of\nclerks shall be deemed a central board of inspectors for purposes of\nthis section.\n (b) At least five days prior to the time fixed for such meeting, the\nboard shall send notice by first class mail to each candidate, political\nparty, and independent body entitled to have had watchers present at the\npolls in any election district in the board's jurisdiction. Such notice\nshall state the time and place fixed by the board for such canvass.\n (c) Each such candidate, political party, and independent body shall\nbe entitled to appoint such number of watchers to attend upon each\ncentral board of inspectors as such candidate, political party, or\nindependent body was entitled to appoint at such election in any one\nelection district for which such central board of inspectors is\ndesignated to act.\n 2. (a) (i) Upon assembling at the time and place fixed for such\nmeeting, each central board of inspectors shall examine, cast, and\ncanvass the envelopes and the ballots therein contained as nearly as\npracticable in the following manner:\n (A) If a person whose name is on an envelope as a voter has already\nvoted in person at such election, or if his or her name and residence as\nstated on the envelope are not on a registration poll record, or the\ncomputer generated list of registered voters or the list of special\npresidential voters, or if there is no name on the envelope, or if the\nenvelope is not sealed, such envelope shall be laid aside unopened.\n (B) If there is more than one ballot envelope executed by the same\nvoter, the one bearing the later date of execution shall be accepted and\nthe other rejected. If it cannot be determined which envelope bears the\nlater date, then all such envelopes shall be rejected.\n (C) If such person is found to be registered and has not voted in\nperson, an inspector shall compare the signature, if any, on each\nenvelope with the signature, if any, on the registration poll record,\nthe computer generated list of registered voters or the list of special\npresidential voters, of the person of the same name who registered from\nthe same address. If the signatures are found to correspond, such\ninspector shall certify thereto by signing his or her initials in the\n"Inspector's Initials" line on the computer generated list of registered\nvoters or in the "remarks" column as appropriate.\n (D) If such person is found to be registered and has not voted in\nperson, and if no challenge is made, or if a challenge made is not\nsustained, the envelope shall be opened, the ballot or ballots withdrawn\nwithout unfolding, and the ballot or ballots deposited in the proper\nballot box or boxes, or envelopes, provided however that, in the case of\na primary election, the ballot shall be deposited in the box only if the\nballot is of the party with which the voter is enrolled according to the\nentry on the back of his or her registration poll record or next to his\nor her name on the computer generated registration list; if not, the\nballot shall be rejected without inspection or unfolding and shall be\nreturned to the envelope which shall be endorsed "not enrolled." At the\ntime of the deposit of such ballot or ballots in the box or envelopes,\nthe inspectors shall enter the words "absentee vote" or "military vote"\nin the space reserved for the voter's signature on the aforesaid list or\nin the "remarks" column as appropriate, and shall enter the year and\nmonth of the election on the same line in the spaces provided therefor.\n (E) As each envelope is opened, if one or more of the different kinds\nof ballots to be voted at the election are not found therein, the\nclerks, or inspectors, shall make a memorandum showing what ballot or\nballots are missing. If a ballot envelope shall contain more than one\nballot for the same offices, all the ballots in such envelope shall be\nrejected. When the casting of such ballots shall have been completed\nthe clerks or inspectors shall ascertain the number of such ballots of\neach kind which have been deposited in the ballot box by deducting from\nthe number of envelopes opened the number of missing ballots, and shall\nmake a return thereof. The number of absentee voters' ballots deposited\nin the ballot box shall be added to the number of other ballots\ndeposited in the ballot box, in order to determine the number of all\nballots of each kind to be accounted for in the ballot box.\n (ii) If the board of inspectors determines that a person was entitled\nto vote at such election it shall cast and canvass such ballot if such\nboard finds that ministerial error by the board of elections or any of\nits employees caused such ballot envelope not to be valid on its face.\n (iii) If the board of elections determines that a person was entitled\nto vote at such election, the board shall cast and canvass such ballot\nif such board finds that the voter appeared at the correct polling\nplace, regardless of the fact that the voter may have appeared in the\nincorrect election district.\n (b)(i) Such board of inspectors shall also cast and canvass any\nfederal write-in absentee ballots validly cast by an absentee voter, a\nmilitary voter or a special federal voter for the offices of president\nand vice-president, United States senator and representative in\ncongress. Such board of inspectors shall also cast and canvass any\nfederal write-in absentee ballots validly cast by a military voter for\nall questions or proposals, public offices or party positions for which\na military voter is otherwise eligible to vote as provided in section\n10-104 of this chapter.\n (ii) Federal write-in absentee ballots shall be cast and canvassed\nonly if: (A) an application for an absentee, military or special federal\nballot was received from the absentee, military or special federal voter\nat least thirty days before election day; (B) the federal write-in\nabsentee ballot was submitted from inside or outside the United States\nby a military voter or was submitted from outside the United States by a\nspecial federal voter; (C) such ballot is received by the board of\nelections not later than thirteen days following the day of election or\nseven days after a primary election; and (D) the absentee, military or\nspecial federal ballot which was sent to the voter is not received by\nthe board of elections by the thirteenth day following the day of a\ngeneral or special election or the seventh day after a primary election.\n (iii) If such a federal write-in absentee ballot is received after\nelection day, the envelope in which it is received must contain: (A) a\ncancellation mark of the United States postal service or a foreign\ncountry's postal service; (B) a dated endorsement of receipt by another\nagency of the United States government; or (C) if cast by a military\nvoter, the signature and date of the voter and one witness thereto with\na date which is ascertained to be not later than the day before election\nday.\n (iv) If such a federal write-in absentee ballot contains the name of a\nperson or persons in the space provided for a vote for any office, such\nballot shall be counted as a vote for such person or persons. A vote for\na person who is the candidate of a party or independent body either for\npresident or vice-president shall be deemed to be a vote for both the\ncandidates of such party or independent body for such offices. If such a\nballot contains the name of a party or independent body in the space\nprovided for a vote for any office, such ballot shall be deemed to be a\nvote for the candidate or candidates, if any, of such party or\nindependent body for such office. In the case of the offices of\npresident and vice-president a vote cast for a candidate, either\ndirectly or by writing in the name of a party or independent body, shall\nalso be deemed to be votes for the electors supporting such candidate.\nAny abbreviation, misspelling or other minor variation in the form of\nthe name of a candidate or a party or independent body shall be\ndisregarded in determining the validity of the ballot, if the intention\ncan be ascertained.\n (c) The following provisions shall apply to casting and canvassing of\nall such ballots which are counted by machine and all other provisions\nof this chapter with respect to casting and canvassing such ballots\nwhich are not inconsistent with this paragraph shall be applicable to\nsuch ballots.\n (i) Such ballots may be separated into sections before being placed in\nthe counting machine.\n (ii) Any write-in ballots and any ballots which cannot be counted by\nthe machine shall be counted manually subject to all the applicable\nprovisions of this chapter with respect to counting of ballots.\n (iii) The record of the vote counted by machine for each candidate and\nfor and against each ballot proposal, printed by election district,\nshall be preserved in the same manner and for the same period as the\nreturns of canvass for the election.\n (d) Any person lawfully present may object to the refusal to cast or\ncanvass any ballot on the grounds that the voter is a properly qualified\nvoter of the election district, or in the case of a party primary duly\nenrolled in such party, or to the casting or canvassing of any ballot on\nthe grounds that the voter is not a properly qualified voter of the\nelection district, or in the case of a party primary not duly enrolled\nin such party, or otherwise not entitled to cast such ballot. When any\nsuch objection is made, the central board of inspectors shall forthwith\nproceed to determine such objection and reject or cast such ballot\naccording to such determination. If the board cannot agree as to the\nvalidity of the ballot it shall set the ballot aside, unopened, for a\nperiod of three days at which time the ballot envelope shall be opened\nand the vote counted unless otherwise directed by an order of the court.\n (e) Upon completing the casting and canvassing of ballots as\nhereinabove provided for any election district, the central board of\ninspectors shall thereupon, as nearly as practicable in the manner\nprovided in this chapter for absentee ballots, verify the number of\nballots so cast, tally the votes so cast, add such tally to the previous\ntally of all votes cast in such election district, and announce the\nresult.\n