ELECTION DAY NOVEMBER 5, 2024
New York State law is clear. Citizens with dual residences have the right to choose where they want to vote. They do not have to vote where they maintain their primary residence.
( See The New York Times: "Weekenders
Win a Round")
Second homeowners have a major stake in the rural communities where they maintain a home, but most have no say in how their tax dollars are being spent, or in decisions that will affect the future of their community for years to come. In swing districts, dual resident voters can determine the outcome of congressional elections.
What the law says:The term ‘‘residence’’ shall be deemed to mean "that place where a person maintains a fixed, permanent and principal home and to which he, wherever temporarily located, always intends to return." Election Law § 1-104 [22] |
In 1983 the New York State Court of Appeals affirmed a woman’s right to vote in Huntington, Long Island even though she lived elsewhere five days a week.
(Ferguson v. McNab, 60 N.Y.2d 598 N.Y Court of Appeals, 1983) |
In 2008 the Appellate Division of the NYS Supreme Court ordered the Delaware County Board of Elections to reinstate eight weekend homeowners who had been stricken from the voting rolls. The court noted "Election Law does not preclude a person from having two residences and choosing one for election purposes provided he or she has 'legitimate, significant and continuing attachments' to that residence." (Wilkie et al v. the Delaware County Board of Elections, No. 504004 NYS Sup. Crt. App. 3d, Oct. 23, 2008) |
 An absentee ballot can make second home voting easy.Voters can have an absentee ballot sent to their primary residence and vote by mail. Find a complete list of County Board of Elections offices here.
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VOTER REGISTRATION FORMS
- Voter registration forms are available at most post offices.
- You can download a PDF version here and mail it to your county Board of Elections. (The “address where you live” is the address you want to use for voter registration.)
- You can also complete the registration form online. (Online registration is routed through the Division of Motor Vehicles. If you have vehicles registered at an address that is different than the one where you want to register to vote, we recommend that you submit a printed registration form rather than utilizing this link.)
NYS SECOND HOME VOTING:
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- If I register to vote from my second home, can I also vote where I maintain my primary residence?
No. You can chose where you want to vote, but you can only vote in one location. - If I register to vote from my vacation home, will it affect my STAR exemption?
STAR exemptions are granted for primary residence only, but you can register and vote from a weekend or vacation home that is not your primary residence, so a change in voter registration does not affect eligibility for a STAR exemption. - If I register to vote from my second home, can my landlord use that as evidence that my country home is actually my primary residence?
Because New York State permits voters to register at their second homes, voter registration is not proof of primary residence. That said, tenants in rent-controlled or rent-stabilized apartments or lofts need to consider their particular circumstances when deciding where to register. - If I register to vote from my second home, where will I be called for jury duty?
New York State relies on information from five state agencies to generate lists of potential jurors: the DMV, the Department of Labor, the Department of Social Services, the Board of Elections and the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance. That means New Yorkers with two homes could conceivably be called for jury duty in either location based on information provided by different state agencies. That does not mean second homeowners are liable to serve more often, than others because jury duty in one jurisdiction is credited as service by other jurisdictions. - If I rent a vacation home in the country, can I vote from that location?
Probably not. A legal voting residence must be a "fixed, permanent and principal home" to which the prospective voter "always intends to return." Short-term vacation rentals simply do not meet that standard. However if someone has rented the same vacation home year after year, has furnished it etc., then the case might be made that this as a permanent residence. - Should I tell the Board of Elections that I am changing my registration to vote from a vacation home, or a home that is not my primary residence?
No.