S 9801: Allows voters to take photographs of themselves and their ballot, or absentee ballot, while in a privacy booth, and to share and disseminate such photographs on social media.
What S 9801 does, verified April 12, 2026
This bill allows voters to take photographs of themselves and their ballots while voting, including absentee ballots, as long as they are in a privacy booth. The voter can also share and disseminate these photographs on social media. The bill prohibits interfering with a voter's right to take a photograph and makes tampering with a ballot a misdemeanor. The bill also prohibits asking a voter to show their ballot to anyone or placing any marks on the ballot to identify it as the one voted by that person. These actions are restricted to what is allowed under the new subdivision four of the section that deals with taking photographs of ballots.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: REFERRED TO ELECTIONS (2026-04-06)Alert me
Quick answers about S 9801
- What is the current status of S 9801?
- As of April 12, 2026, S 9801 is recorded as "Introduced": it has been introduced and is waiting for its first committee hearing or floor vote. The last recorded action, on April 6, 2026, was "REFERRED TO ELECTIONS".
- Did S 9801 pass?
- Not yet. S 9801 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 9801, and where is it now?
- S 9801 was authored by Sen. Luis Sepúlveda. Its committee of record is Senate Elections. It is filed under ELN, alongside 111 other New York ELN bills this session.
Author and sponsors
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| Apr. 06, 2026 | REFERRED TO ELECTIONS |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, April 6, 2026 · 369 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9801 IN SENATE April 6, 2026 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to allowing voters to take photographs of themselves and their ballots while voting The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 8-300 of the election law is amended by adding a 2 new subdivision 4 to read as follows: 3 4. (a) A voter shall be allowed to take photographs of themselves and 4 their own ballot, or absentee ballot, while in a privacy booth. Such 5 voter shall also be allowed to share and disseminate such photographs on 6 social media. For purposes of this subdivision social media shall 7 include, but shall not be limited to forms of communication through 8 which users participate in online communities to share information, 9 ideas, personal messages, and other content. Social media shall also 10 include text messages and the transmission of images via electronic 11 forms of communication. 12 (b) Any person who interferes with a voter's photograph pursuant to 13 paragraph (a) of this subdivision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. 14 § 2. Subdivisions 10 and 11 of section 17-130 of the election law are 15 amended to read as follows: 16 10. [Shows his] Solicits a voter to show such voter's ballot after it 17 is prepared for voting, to any person so as to reveal the contents[, or18solicits a voter to show the same]; or, 19 11. Places any mark upon [his] such person's ballot, or does any other 20 act in connection with [his] such person's ballot with the intent that 21 it may be identified as the one voted by [him] such person, other than 22 what is allowed pursuant to subdivision four of section 8-300 of this 23 chapter; or, 24 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02299-01-5
Text of S 9801 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions