NEW YORK (WBEN) - On Friday, Governor Cuomo issued an executive order that mandates New York residents be mailed an absentee ballot application for the June 23 primary and special election.
No New Yorker should have to choose between their health and their right to vote.I am issuing an Executive Order mandating that the State Board of Elections automatically mail all registered voters postage-paid applications for an absentee ballot.
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) April 24, 2020
State Board of Elections are required to mail every state resident a postage-paid application.
Democratic Board of Elections Commissioner Jeremy Zellner applauded the decision.
"Yesterday's gubernatorial executive order requiring that every eligible voter receive an absentee request form is the right choice, given the current pandemic and the very realpossibility that fear of infection may keep people from casting a ballot," he said in a written statement. "We have a clear responsibility on two fronts: protect public health and prevent disenfranchisement of any voter.
"The expansion of absentee options is the best way to serve both purposes", added Zellner.
