Absentee Voting

You may vote by absentee ballot if you will be:

• Unavoidably absent from your county on election day
• Unable to appear at the polls due to illness or disability
• You have duties related to the primary care of one or more individuals who are ill or physically disabled
• A patient in a veteran's administration hospital
• Detained in jail awaiting grand jury action or confined in prison after conviction of an offense other than a felony
• You are disabled of permanently ill (see below)

If disabled or permanently ill:

If you are permanently ill or disabled, you have the right to receive an absentee ballot for each subsequent election without further application. Simply file an application with your Board of Elections containing a statement which describes the particulars of your illness or disability. The Board will review the facts stated and, if satisfied, will mark your registration record. You will then automatically receive an absentee ballot for every election until your registration is cancelled.

Electronic Submissions

Absentee application may be submitted via mail, email, fax, or via the State Board of Elections Electronic Portal (see below). Drop in applications are also accepted.

Letter/Email Request
You may also request an Absentee Ballot by sending a letter or email. The letter must be received no later than 15 days before the election. The letter or email must contain the following information: your name and date of birth, the address where you are registered, an address where the ballot is to be sent, and the reason for the request. The deadline to apply by letter/email is June 12, 2023 for Primary Election and October 23, 2023 for the General Election.

The letter may be sent via mail, email or fax. Our email is VoterInfo@co.rockland.ny.us and our fax is 845-638-5196.

Please note: Unless you are applying to become a Permanent Absentee Voter due to illness or disability, Absentee applications are valid for one calendar year only.

Absentee Portal
Visit the State Board of Elections and apply using the Absentee Ballot Portal. This is convenient and efficient. You can apply for the Primary, General, or both in under 5 minutes. Your request will be transmitted directly to us. We encourage you to take advantage of the portal.

Absentee Application:

New Legislation
Due to a recent change in law, New York State voters are no longer permitted to cast a ballot on a voting machine if they have already been issued an absentee ballot for that election. Voters who have already been issued an absentee ballot can still vote in person using an affidavit ballot. The affidavit ballot will be kept separate until the election is completed. Election officials will verify whether the voter's absentee ballot has been received. If the voter's absentee ballot has been received, the affidavit ballot will not be counted. If the voter's absentee ballot has not been received, the affidavit ballot will be counted.

Download the Absentee Application below for more information.

Forms to Download:
(When completing the application form, be sure to print clearly)
Download Absentee Ballot Application
Download Absentee Ballot Application in Spanish

Meeting Voter Access Needs:
If you are a visually impaired voter or cannot independently cast your ballot, you may also apply for an accessible absentee ballot using the State Board Accessible Absentee Portal or by downloading the Accessible Absentee Ballot Application.

Voters using the accessible absentee ballot system in need of printing services in order to print their ballot can access such services at certain public printing resources, including but not limited to, libraries, print stores, shipping stores, and office supply stores. Voters should contact their local printing resources for details on the printing services offered.

In-person voting using an accessible Ballot Marking Device ("BMD") during early voting or on Election Day is still available to voters with a disability who do not want to vote by absentee ballot using the accessible absentee ballot system.

*IMPORTANT: Take Mail Times into Account.
The law now requires that we receive your application 15 days prior to the election, you should be mindful of mailing and processing times. It may take several days for us to receive your application and we need up to 4 days to process and mail back to you. We strongly encourage voters to mail applications earlier.

Designate someone to pick up your ballot:
If you cannot pick up your ballot, or will not be able to receive it through the mail, you have the right to designate someone to pick it up for you. Only that person designated on your application may pick up and deliver your ballot. Important: The expanded submission policies may not be used if you are designating an agent for pick up. You must submit a paper application to the Board to assign an agent.

How to Cast an Absentee Ballot

• Once your receive the ballot, mark the ballot according to your choices for each office following the instructions on the ballot.
• Once you have completed marking your ballot fold it up and place it in the Security Envelope. (This envelope will have a place for your signature.)
• Sign and date the outside of the Security Envelope.
• Seal the Security Envelope.
• Place the Security Envelope in the Return Envelope. (This envelope will have the return address of Rockland County Board of Elections on the outside and should have a logo that reads, "Official Election Mail")
• Seal the Return Envelope.
  

Return the ballot in person:
If you prefer to drop off your ballot rather than mailing it:

• You or a representative can return it to any of our poll sites on Election Day. Go straight to the Managers. Do not wait on line to return your ballot. You must return your ballot by 9:00PM.
• You or a representative can return it to any of our early voting centers during Early Voting. Click here for Early Voting hours. Go straight to the Managers. Do not wait on line to return your ballot.
• You or a representative can return it to the Board of Elections during regular business hours.
• You or a representative can return it to the Board of Elections during our extended hours. Click here for extended availability.
• You or a representative can return it to the Board of Elections on Primary or General Election Day . We are open from 6AM until 9PM. You must return your ballot by the 9:00PM deadline.
• Secure Ballot Box: Return it to the Board of Elections after hours. Use our secure ballot return box, right outside of our front door. Important: After hours return is not available on Election Day. The deadline to return your ballot is 9:00PM. The ballot box kiosk will be closed and locked promptly at 9:00PM on the day of the General Election.

Return the ballot by mail:
Ballots normally have to be postmarked the day BEFORE the election. Due to COVID, legislation was signed into law allowing voters to postmark the ballots up until the day of the election, Primary: June 27, 2023 and General: November 7, 2023. Ballots must be received by us not later than seven (7) days after the election. Once you receive your ballot, complete it, place it in the oath envelope, sign the oath envelope, seal it, place it into the mail envelope, seal it, and mail it immediately. The earlier the better! Remember: As the deadline approaches, you may ask the Post Office to physically stamp your ballot so that you can ensure your ballot has the proper postmark date.

IMPORTANT: Take Mail Times into Account.
While the law allows you to postmark your ballot on the day of (Primary: June 27, 2023 and General: November 7, 2023 only) or the day before the election, you should be mindful of mailing times. Your ballot must be received within seven (7) days to be counted. Mail times will vary based on location. We strongly encourage you to return your ballot as soon as you receive it. The Post Office guidance is at least 15 days prior to the election.

On Election Day polls are open from 6:00am to 9:00pm. If you know you will not be in your voting district on this day, you may vote by absentee ballot. See the list of reasons below for voting by absentee ballot as well as the deadlines for applying for and mailing your ballot.

Absentee Cures
There are certain errors or problems that can occur when a voter completes an absentee ballot envelope. Many of these errors or problems are curable by means of filing a cure statement with your board of elections. If your ballot envelope has a curable defect, you will receive a notice from the board of elections.

For additional information visit the New York State Board of Elections