A 7724: Relates to the representation of newly formed political parties; relates to the placement of candidates of newly formed political parties on ballots, the representation of such parties within the state and the transmission of the official canvass of votes cast for presidential electors.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7724 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY April 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. WALKER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to the representation of newly formed political parties The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 7-116 of the election law is 2 amended to read as follows: 3 1. In printing the names of candidates on the ballot, the candidate or 4 candidates of the party which polled [for its candidate for the office 5 of governor at the last preceding election for such office] the highest 6 number of votes for its candidate for governor or for its slate of pres- 7 ident electors at the most recent general election in an even numbered 8 year, shall be [row or] column A or one and the candidates of the other 9 parties shall be placed on such ballot in descending order of such 10 votes. 11 § 2. Section 6-124 of the election law, as amended by chapter 876 of 12 the laws of 1977, is amended to read as follows: 13 § 6-124. Conventions; judicial. A judicial district convention shall 14 be constituted by the election at the preceding primary of delegates and 15 alternate delegates, if any, from each assembly district or, if an 16 assembly district shall contain all or part of two or more counties and 17 if the rules of the party shall so provide, separately from the part of 18 such assembly district contained within each such county. The number of 19 delegates and alternates, if any, shall be determined by party rules, 20 but the number of delegates shall be substantially in accordance with 21 the ratio, which the number of votes cast for the party candidate for 22 the office of governor, on the line or column of the party at the last 23 preceding election for such office, in any unit of representation, bears 24 to the total vote cast at such election for such candidate on such line 25 or column in the entire state; provided, however, for a new party formed EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD06893-01-5 
 A. 7724 2 1 at a presidential election, for such party's judicial district conven- 2 tion held in the second year after the presidential election, such ratio 3 shall be based on such party's vote for presidential electors, as other- 4 wise as provided by this section, and thereafter based on such party's 5 vote for the office of governor. The number of alternates from any 6 district shall not exceed the number of delegates therefrom. The deleg- 7 ates certified to have been elected as such, in the manner provided in 8 this chapter, shall be conclusively entitled to their seats, rights and 9 votes as delegates to such convention. When a duly elected delegate does 10 not attend the convention, [his] such delegate's place shall be taken by 11 one of the alternates, if any, to be substituted in [his] the delegate's 12 place, in the order of the vote received by each such alternate as such 13 vote appears upon the certified list and if an equal number of votes 14 were cast for two or more such alternates; the order in which such 15 alternates shall be substituted shall be determined by lot forthwith 16 upon the convening of the convention. If there shall have been no 17 contested election for alternate, substitution shall be in the order in 18 which the name of such alternate appears upon the certified list, and if 19 no alternates shall have been elected or if no alternates appear at such 20 convention, then the delegates present from the same district shall 21 elect a person to fill the vacancy. 22 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 2-104 of the election law, as amended by 23 chapter 260 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows: 24 1. The county committee of each party shall be constituted by the 25 election in each election district within such county of at least two 26 members and of such additional members as the rules of the county 27 committee of the party within the county or the statement filed pursuant 28 hereto may provide for such district, proportional to the party vote in 29 the district for governor at the last preceding gubernatorial election, 30 or in the case of a new party formed at a presidential election when 31 first electing members of a county committee, proportional to the party 32 vote in the district for presidential electors at the last preceding 33 presidential election, or in case the boundaries of such district have 34 been changed or a new district has been created since the last preceding 35 gubernatorial election used to apportion members, proportional to the 36 party vote cast for member of assembly or in the event there was no 37 election for member of assembly, then proportional to the number of 38 enrolled voters of such party in such district on the list of enrolled 39 voters last published by the board of elections, excluding voters in 40 inactive status. In a county in which no additional members are provided 41 for by the rules of the county committee or the statement filed pursuant 42 hereto the voting power of each member shall be in proportion to such 43 party vote or, if the election district which such member represents was 44 created or changed since the last election for member of assembly, 45 proportional to such party enrollment. In a county in which additional 46 members are so provided for, on the basis of the party vote or enroll- 47 ment in election districts within such county, each member shall have 48 one vote. Each member of a county committee shall be an enrolled voter 49 of the party residing in the county and the assembly district from which 50 or in the assembly district containing the election district in which 51 such member is elected except that a member of a county committee who, 52 as a result of an alteration of assembly district lines, no longer 53 resides within such assembly district may continue to serve for the 54 balance of the term to which [he] the member was elected. 55 § 4. Subdivision 5 of section 7-104 of the election law, as amended by 56 chapter 411 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 
 A. 7724 3 1 5. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision four of this section, 2 the name of a person who is nominated for the office of president of the 3 United States (electors for), governor, or state senator, or member of 4 assembly, shall appear on the ballot as many times as there are parties 5 or independent bodies nominating [him or her] such person, and there 6 shall be a separate voting position at each place in which such name 7 shall appear. 8 § 5. Subdivision 4 of section 6-104 of the election law is amended to 9 read as follows: 10 4. Upon the vote for such designation, each member of the state 11 committee shall be entitled to cast a number of votes which shall be in 12 accordance with the ratio which the number of votes cast for the party 13 candidate for governor on the line or column of the party at the last 14 preceding general state election in the unit of representation of such 15 member bears to the total vote cast on such line or column at such 16 election for such candidate in the entire state, or in the case of a new 17 party formed at a presidential election, each member of the state 18 committee shall be entitled to cast a number of votes which shall be in 19 accordance with the ratio which the number of votes cast for the party's 20 presidential electors at the last preceding presidential election in the 21 unit of representation of such member bears to the total vote cast on 22 such line or column at such election for such electors in the entire 23 state, until such time as such new party has a party vote for its candi- 24 date for governor. The apportionment of such votes as so prescribed 25 shall be determined by the rules of the party. 26 § 6. The third undesignated paragraph of section 9-214 of the election 27 law is amended to read as follows: 28 The board of elections shall transmit to the state board, on or before 29 the tenth day of December following an election for governor or presi- 30 dential electors, a certified tabulated statement, by election 31 districts, of the official canvass of the votes cast for candidates for 32 governor or presidential electors, to include, in the case of a candi- 33 date who was nominated by two or more parties or independent bodies, a 34 separate statement of the number of votes cast for [him] such candidate 35 as the candidate of each party or independent body by which [he] such 36 candidate was nominated and if the county contains more than one assem- 37 bly district or parts of more than one assembly district, a statement of 38 the number of votes cast for governor or presidential electors by assem- 39 bly district. 40 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.