Sen. Michael Gianaris, D-Astoria, is pictured during a news conference in March. Gianaris and Assemblywoman Karines Reyes, D-Queens, are proposing an expansion of early voting by mail. Photo courtesy Sen. Michael Gianaris via Facebook

New legislation seeks to end the fight over voting by mail in New York state.

Sen. Michael Gianaris, D-Astoria and Senate deputy majority leader, and Assemblywoman Karines Reyes, D-Queens, have introduced legislation (S.7384.A,7362) that would expand early voting by mail as well as require some absentee ballots to be counted as ballots by mail — circumventing an argument Republicans have made over absentee voting without a valid reason violating the state constitution.

“Voting is a fundamental right and the easier we make it to vote, the healthier our democracy will be,” Gianaris said. “I am proud the State Senate continues to build on its important work of expanding access to the ballot box for all New Yorkers.”

It remains to be seen if the bill will be considered before the end of the state legislative session in June, though doing so this year with so few offices up for election could allow for legal challenges to play out before state and federal races dominate the ballot in 2024.

New Yorkers would request an Early Voting ballot from their local Board of Elections and it would need to be returned before the close of polls on Election Day.

Gianaris and Reyes propose allowing applications for voting early by mail to be received by mail up to 10 days before election day, though applications received in person would be granted no later than the day before election day. Applications for an early mail ballot will also be required to provide an opportunity for voters to request an early mail ballot for all remaining elections during that calendar year.

The legislation also creates a personal online application system through the state Board of Elections that also includes a tracking system that would allow voters to log in to see the status of their early mail ballot.

One argument Republicans made in 2022 was to challenge those who are eligible to vote by absentee ballot after Democrats sent absentee ballot applications to an unknown number of Democrats with voter information pre-filled, including worry over COVID-19, as the reason to request absentee ballots. Gianaris and Reyes propose that if someone requesting an absentee ballot doesn’t provide a reason to use an absentee ballot, their vote would simply be counted as an early mail ballot — a workaround to Republicans’ claims no-excuse absentee ballots are unconstitutional.

“As voting rights continually come under in state legislatures across the state, our state can take a bold step in protecting the rights of New Yorkers seeking to access the ballot box,” Reyes said. “I am pleased to sponsor the New York Early Mail Voter Act with State Senate Deputy Leader Gianaris to ease the burdens that voters face and increase voter participation in our democracy.”

Similar legislation took effect in 2022 in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, with the Massachusetts bill challenged in court. The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled in August that voting by mail didn’t violate the state’s constitution despite language saying there are only three reasons to use an absentee ballot — when a voter is going to be out of town for Election Day, has a disability, or has a religious-based conflict with Election Day.