Henry Berger

The Board of Canvassers met initially to certify election results from the November 4, 2025, General Election. Subsequently, the meeting reconvened as the Commissioners of the New York State Board of Elections. Unit updates covered Online and Automatic Voter Registration, the State Board Training Institute curriculum development, and support provided to county boards for new voting equipment acceptance testing. The Legal unit reported on litigation and compliance statistics, emphasizing process simplification for stakeholders. The Enforcement Division detailed several closed investigations. New Business included the unanimous approval of several resolutions for the final adoption of amendments to NYCRR Subtitle V regulations concerning Fair Campaign Code Proceedings, Standards for Determining Valid Write-In Votes, Voter Registration Transmittal Submission, and Conflicts of Interest Among Board of Elections Employees. Additionally, the Board voted on Fair Campaign Code Complaint Matters and approved an Advisory Opinion regarding Campaign Finance Security Expenses, while rejecting one complaint matter.

This document outlines twenty-two legislative proposals by the New York State Board of Elections for the year 2026. The proposals aim to enhance the administration of elections in New York State by addressing areas such as voter access, election process modernization, campaign finance regulations, and operational efficiencies for election officials and municipal clerks. Key proposals include provisions for special ballots, repeal of local registration, updated campaign finance attribution and limits, revised poll worker requirements, and the consolidation of election processes under a statewide voter registration system.

The Board of Canvassers convened to certify election results from the November 4, 2025, General Election. Following adjournment of the Board of Canvassers, the Commissioners met. Unit updates covered Online and Automatic Voter Registration, curriculum development for poll worker training, and support provided to county boards leading up to the General Election, including acceptance testing for new voting equipment. The Legal unit reported on litigation updates and compliance management focused on updating training and simplifying procedures. The Enforcement Division detailed several closed investigations. The PIO/NVRA unit discussed county board outreach, website updates, and grants. The IT unit reported on ongoing network infrastructure replacement and the implementation of a new phone system. New Business included unanimous votes for the final adoption of four resolutions regarding Fair Campaign Code Proceedings, Standards for Determining Valid Write-In Votes, Voter Registration Transmittal Submission, and Conflicts of Interest Among Board of Elections Employees. There was also a vote to commence Testing of Enhanced Audit, version 2026, and votes on Fair Campaign Code Complaint Matters, one of which was rejected.

The meeting commenced with the State Board acting as the State Board of Canvassers to certify the results of the November 4, 2025, General Election, which included judicial districts, a statewide proposition, and a special election for Assembly District 115. This certification followed a manual recount in Renelair necessitated by a formatting issue identified during post-election verification, which required a broader review out of an abundance of caution. Following certification, the board approved the minutes for the August 6, 2025, and September 20, 2025 meetings. Unit update reports covered significant progress in Online Voter Registration (OVR), with substantial growth in New Yorkers using the portal. Work on Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) is progressing, with Phase One nearing completion. The integration of new agencywide software with vendor MTX is underway, with public reporting site development ongoing. Updates were provided on ongoing litigation concerning redistricting, the OTB writin statute, the Equal Rights Amendment, and challenges to the voter registration database. Compliance updates highlighted the processing of numerous reviews, registrations, and terminations, and a renewed focus on updating training materials and simplifying forms to improve committee hygiene and stakeholder understanding.

The meeting included a vote to approve the upgrade of the Electronic Poll Book System. An executive session was held to discuss enforcement matters related to the issuance of certain subpoenas by the Chief Enforcement Counsel, followed by a vote on a resolution related to these subpoenas.