October 6, 2020
Questions about voting this year? Read this.
uupdate 10-6-20

Your vote counts. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise

The election process this year is complicated, due in large part to the coronavirus pandemic and baseless claims of voter fraud made continually by President Donald Trump.

Voter fraud is extremely rare in the U.S. The Washington Post, in a June study, found just 372 cases of potential fraud out of approximately 14.6 million ballots cast by mail—accounting for just 0.0025% of all mail-in ballots—in 2016 and 2018.

Also, Trump’s own FBI director, Christopher Wray, contradicted Trump in sworn testimony before the Senate Homeland Security Committee Sept. 24. In his testimony, Wray said the FBI hasn’t seen historical evidence of a “coordinated voter fraud effort” in any U.S. election.

“Please register to vote and please vote on Nov. 3,” said UUP President Fred Kowal. “This is an historic election, one that could literally mean the difference between life or death for hundreds of thousands of Americans. Please exercise your right to vote. Please make your voice heard. Please vote.”

Don’t wait. Register to vote.

Whether you vote in person or by absentee ballot, you must register to vote. If you’re not registered, you have until Friday, Oct. 9 to do so. Don’t wait. Register today.

Go HERE to find information on how to register.

If you’re not sure if you’re registered to vote, you can check by clicking HERE .

In New York, voters have three options: voting in person, early in-person voting and voting with an absentee ballot.

If you’ve decided to vote in person, you have two options: casting your vote early and voting on Election Day.

Early voting

Early voting in New York begins Saturday, Oct. 24 and ends Sunday Nov. 1.

Any registered voter can vote early. Each county has designated locations and different hours for voters to cast their votes before Election Day. So make sure to check your county board of election to know where and when you can vote early.

Click HERE for a list of links to county boards of election, which will list early voting locations and times for their respective counties.

Early voters cannot vote on Election Day, Nov. 3.

Election Day voting

If you’re going to vote on Nov. 3, simply go to your polling place and cast your vote. Click HERE to find your polling place.

On Election Day, polling places in New York will open at 6 a.m. and close at 9 p.m.

Absentee voting

Then there’s absentee voting.

On Aug. 20, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a law allowing all voters to immediately request absentee ballots; a second law allows ballots to be postmarked the day of the election.

Click HERE to apply for an absentee ballot online and to find information on how to request one in person, by email, by phone, by fax and by mail. Make sure to mark the box on the form that says “temporary illness” if you are requesting the ballot because of coronavirus concerns.

The deadline to apply online or by mail for an absentee ballot is Oct. 27. You can apply for a ballot in person up until Nov. 2.

There are several ways to submit an absentee ballot:

  • Mail it (it must be postmarked no later than Nov. 3)
  • Drop it off at an early voting poll site between Oct. 24 and Nov. 1
  • Drop it off at a poll site on Nov. 3; polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 pm
  • Drop it off at your County Board of Elections office by 9 p.m. on Nov. 3

Click HERE for more information or questions on voting in the general election in New York on Nov. 3.

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