The following applies only to New York voters who are currently registered as anything other than Democrats. If you are a new voter, you still have time to register as a Democrat!
New Yorkers — An important voter registration deadline is October 9th, and if you miss it, you won’t be able to vote for Bernie Sanders. All New York State registered voters who wish to vote for Bernie Sanders in the New York Democratic primary election on April 19 must be registered as a Democrat Friday, October 9. Anyone currently registered as independent, undeclared, or any other party must update their affiliation to Democrat by the deadline if they wish to vote for Bernie.
New York has what is called a closed primary, which means the only voters who will be allowed to vote in the primary elections for a given party must be registered as members of that party. Many New York voters are unaware of this crucial fact.
Some voters are registered independents, others are registered with the Green Party, the Working Families Party, the Liberal Party or another party. These are people who tend to be ideologically in agreement with Bernie Sanders and his positions. A great many of them intend to vote for Bernie in the New York primary on the assumption that their votes will count.
They will not.
Unless Bernie supporters in New York State update their affiliation to the Democratic Party by October 9, they will not be able to vote in the April 19 Democratic primary.
As those who have answered Bernie’s call for a political revolution here in New York, we must inform as many of these people as possible, as quickly as possible, and assist them in the process of updating their affiliation as necessary.
How to update your registration
First, check to see if your own voter registration record is correct and up to date. If you are not listed as democrat and think you should be, Call 1-866-VOTE-NYC to verify your affiliation.
Although New York has online registration, it is too late to update your registration there. You will need to physically go to the Board of Elections office and submit your Voter Registration card. Find your nearest BOE here.
How to help spread the word
Sharing this page will only go so far. Sign up at TeamBernieNY’s Phone Bank to help make phone calls to inform New York’s voters.
Credit for this Voter Alert goes to Michael V. Kniat, a writer who feels the Bern in New York City.
He can be reached at michael (at) newnirvana (dot) net.
No spam, ever. Only used for very important announcements and reminders.
This post is filled with misinformation. I called the board of elections, and they directed me to the actual calendar. The date is March 25, not October 9:
http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/law/2016nyPresidentialPrimaryPoliticalCalendar.pdf
I think whoever created this website is confused. October 9 is the registration deadline for New York’s local general elections in 2015, NOT the 2016 presidential primary. Please do better research before giving information to voters.
I want to apologize for my previous incorrect comment, that was based on incorrect information given to me by my county board of elections. This post does not contain any misinformation, and I apologize for the confusion.
That’s okay Andrew. I too was confused by the rule but it bares out like Jon says. It means that after the deadline the focus will shift to making sure non-registered residents who wish to vote for Bernie do so as Democrats so that they can vote for him come April. Its really deflating to see that New York actually has the earliest deadline of all the states and for no real good reason either.
This info is actually incorrect! I talked with my county’s board of elections. This Friday’s deadline is for the general election in Novemver. The presidential election has a different calendar (http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/law/2016nyPresidentialPrimaryPoliticalCalendar.pdf) and the deadline to register to vote in primaries is in March.
Hi Mary,
The deadline to register to vote for those who are currently not registered is in March, but if you are already registered to vote in the state of New York as anything other than Democrat, then October 9th is in fact the deadline. This is because New York voting laws state that you can only update your affiliation after an election, and the general election happening this year is the last that qualifies for updating your affiliation before the primaries.
Hope that helps clear things up!
- Jon
can you link me to the election code? if this is true, then it’s inconsistent with the laws in all 49 other states. it’s also something that isn’t reflected on the national voter registration postcard, which many people fill out when they need to update their party. so, yeah, problematic.
Hi Debra,
It’s highly inconsistent, yes, although we’ve already passed several more affiliation deadlines, including Colorado (where it appears even new voters cannot participate in the caucus as they must have been affiliated by the deadline), Kentucky, and New Hampshire. Many people are rightfully upset that they won’t be able to vote for their preferred candidate due to some ostensibly arbitrary deadlines. At least in the latter two you are still able to register as a Democrat and vote (I believe), so long as you are a new voter.
As to New York’s deadline, the election code is Section 5-304, which is a bit dry. The deadline is listed on several authoritative sources.
The EAC should probably be contacted to include the information on the NVR Form, looks like they have several pending changes for other states, according to their website.
Will someone confirm that IF someone new to New York and NOT ALREADY REGISTERED to vote in New York registers as a Democrat by the March 25, 2016 deadline, he or she can vote for Bernie in the April 2016 presidential primary?
Hey Taylor, that is correct. If you are not registered to vote in New York, or if you are not affiliated with any party, you’ll be able to update your affiliation to Democrat up to 25 days before the election and Bernie will be on your ballot!
Thanks, Jon.
On the strength of your assurance, I will register now as a democrat in New York (where I just moved) and forgo a special trip back to Massachusetts (where now registered) for the presidential primary. I will vote, instead in New York this April.
I am currently registered to vote in NY because I go to college there. I am undeclared and obviously the NY deadline has past, but I’ve been meaning to change my registration back to my hometown in NJ. If I do that, will I be able to vote in the primaries?
Hey Michael, from what I understand, students living in another state have the option of voting in either the state they are going to school in, OR their home state. As you are unaffiliated in NY, the deadline doesn’t affect you, so you can vote in whichever primary you like!
Hi guys,
I lived in WA state in 08, and voted for Obama. I am not registered for any party. I moved to NY in 2012 and am still not registered for a party. Will I be able to vote for Bernie? And if my deadline passed? Thank you.
Hi Jon,
Thanks so much for the info brother! I’m 46 in NY and I have never registered. So happy to learn I can still register by March 25th to vote for Bernie in 2016. The whole process including the different options for voting, registering and our state’s (ridiculous) deadlines are very confusing to a newbie. I thought I had missed my chance.
My question is, since I work from home and have no car, what are the options, if any, for me to register and/or vote online. As long as I can hopefully still get registered online, I don’t care if I have to walk to the voting booth on election day.
Thanks!
Jeremy
Hey Jeremy,
You may be able to submit an absentee vote via mail, but I’m not certain. Check out the information on absentee voting in New York here.
If that doesn’t work, check here for the closest polling place. If it’s too far away, let me know, and I’ll see if I can arrange to have some carpool type deal on election day so you aren’t left out!
I sent the form in to change my party to Democrat. I got a letter back from the Board of Elections on 10/7/15 stating that they would change it after the election. I have not heard anything back since and I just checked the online link and it still has my old party listing. Shouldn’t I receive a new voter registration card?
Cathy Walsh, definitely call them directly and speak to someone to amend your status as you applied and it was processed prior to the deadline date. Be persistent if necessary. Voting is your right. Feel the Bern!