The American Democracy Project is collaborating with the League of Women Voters of Chautauqua County to help SUNY Fredonia students apply for an absentee ballot so they can vote in the fast-approaching mid-term elections.
New York state absentee ballot applications can be picked up at the ADP-sponsored table in the McEwen Hall corridor, adjacent to the Faculty Student Association café and near the library entrance, on Tuesday, Oct. 11, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Students who want more information and assistance on voting absentee but are not able to stop by the table can pursue other options. Information on how to apply for an absentee ballot is available online. It contains information on voting absentee in all 50 states.
Absentee voting in New York state is more stringent this year, according to ADP. Those who apply for an absentee ballot will not be permitted to vote on a machine at the polls. Instead, they will have to vote using an affidavit ballot.
Students from New York state can vote absentee if they: 1) will be absent from their county or, if a resident of New York City, absent from the five boroughs, on election day, or 2) are unable to appear at the polls due to temporary or permanent illness or disability (including the risk of COVID-19). See additional qualifications to vote by absentee ballot in New York state online.
Students can apply for an absentee ballot in any of the following ways:
- Use the online Absentee Ballot Application portal
- Or visit online for information on absentee voting in all 50 states
- Go in-person to their local county board of elections
- Designate another person to deliver their application in-person to their local county board of elections and receive the ballot on the student’s behalf.
Applications requesting an absentee ballot by mail or by on-line portal must be received by the board of elections in the student’s county no later than Oct. 24, or 15 days before the election.
The last day to apply in person for a New York State absentee ballot from the student’s board of elections is Nov. 7, the day before the election.
Nov. 8 is the last day to postmark the actual absentee ballot, which is also the last day to deliver the actual absentee ballot in person to the student’s New York state county board of elections or poll site by close of polls. Postmarked absentee ballots must be received by the county board of elections no later than Nov. 15.
Students can buy U.S. Postal Service stamps to mail their voter registration forms at the following locations: campus bookstore in University Commons, SUNY Fredonia Credit Union in the Williams Center; Fredonia Post Office, 21 Day St.; and Dunkirk Post Office, 410 Central Ave.
Students are encouraged to join the campus’ Election 2022 Challenge. Through Nov. 8, ADP will hold a #FREDvote campaign. ADP wants students to accept the challenge. All students need to do is post the graphic (at the top of this story) to their social media pages using #FREDvote and tag @ADPfredonia. ADP want to see students show that their vote is their voice.
