New York Court Unanimously Upholds Absentee Ballot Counting Law on October 31, 2024 Amid GOP Challenge

The New York Court of Appeals has unanimously upheld a law that mandates the counting of absentee ballots even when there is uncertainty regarding their validity. This decision, made on October 31, 2024, is seen as a significant victory for state Democrats and comes after a legal challenge from Republican entities. The ruling stipulates that ballots must be counted if a local, bipartisan board of ballot reviewers cannot reach a consensus on their validity. This law is part of Election Law §9-209 (2)(g) and affects provisional ballots submitted on Election Day by voters who returned defective mail ballots. The GOP has criticized the ruling, arguing that it disregards state law, but the court's decision reinforces the counting of provisional ballots in these scenarios.