STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6714
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                     March 15, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M. of A. GALEF, DICKENS, BLAKE, GOTTFRIED, D'URSO, NIOU,
          LAWRENCE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. THIELE  --  read  once  and
          referred to the Committee on Election Law
        AN  ACT  to amend the election law, in relation to opportunity to ballot
          committee to receive notices
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 6-164 of the election law, as amended by chapter 16
     2  of the laws of 1988, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 6-164. Primary, uncontested; opportunity to ballot. Enrolled members
     4  of  a party entitled to vote in the nomination of a candidate for public
     5  office or the election of a candidate for party position  in  a  primary
     6  election  of  such  party, and equal in number to at least the number of
     7  signers required to designate a candidate for such  office  or  position
     8  may  file  with the officer or board with whom or which are filed desig-
     9  nating petitions for such office or position a  petition  requesting  an
    10  opportunity  to write in the name of a candidate or candidates, who need
    11  not be specified, for such office or position. Upon the receipt of  such
    12  a  petition,  such  office or position shall be deemed contested and the
    13  primary ballots of the party shall afford an opportunity to vote  there-
    14  on.  Requests for an opportunity to write in the names of candidates for
    15  two  or  more offices or positions may be included in the same petition.
    16  Such petitions shall be subject to objections  and  court  determination
    17  thereof  in  the  same  manner  as  designating  petitions so far as the
    18  provisions therefor are applicable. All required notices shall be served
    19  on the members of the committee named in the petition, and such  commit-
    20  tee  shall  have capacity to bring a proceeding under this chapter as if
    21  such committee was a candidate named on a petition.   A signature  to  a
    22  petition  for an opportunity to ballot in primary elections made earlier
    23  than sixteen days before the last day to file designating petitions  for
    24  the primary election shall not be counted.
    25    § 2. This act shall take effect on the fifteenth day of December after
    26  it shall have become a law.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10642-01-9