We believe that voting is paramount to our democracy.
Below are some resources we hope will help you get involved.
Click here to download the "How to Vote" guide we've been handing out all over NYC
Below are some resources we hope will help you get involved.
Click here to download the "How to Vote" guide we've been handing out all over NYC
How to Vote
- Mark your calendar. The General Election is 11/8.
- Find out IF and WHERE you are registered at CanIVote.org.
- If you are not registered, do that. See below.
- Research! Find out what you can vote for. Additional NYC voting issues are below. Check out the televised debates and our theatrical presentations here.
- Find your polling place. NYC residents can find their polling places here, others can find them here.
- Make sure you have the proper identification. In New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, you don't need any ID to vote. Your name will be on a list at check in. In Connecticut you need a non-photo ID. Other states have stricter laws that you can find out about here.
- Vote!
- Call your mom. Call your uncle who watches cable news all day. Call your sister who just had a baby. Call your ex. Call everyone and ask them if they've voted!
Registration, Absentee, & Early Voting for the November 8th General Election
New York
If you live in a different state, Rock the Vote has clear deadlines and instructions here.
Voting Rights & What to Do if They're Violated
- You have a right to vote for representation (at many levels) if you are at least 18 years old and a citizen of the United State without a felony conviction.
- You have a right to decide your own vote. It is illegal for anyone to bully or intimidate you into a vote.
- You have a right to be counted. Contact a poll worker or use the phone number below if you believe your voting machine is not working or if there is a problem with your ballot.
- You have a right to privacy. No one can ask to see your vote.
More Voting Rights for New York State
- You have a right to up to two hours of paid time off to vote if your work schedule prevents you from voting while polls are open. You must inform your employer at least two but no more than ten days before exercising this right.
- You have a right to bring materials into voting booths. However, you may not display campaign clothing, stickers, or buttons at the polling place. Hide them in your bag and put them back on as soon as you're done voting!
- If someone challenges your right to vote, you have a right to take a “Challenge Oath." If you can complete the oaths, you have a right to cast a regular ballot. More info on challenges here (starting page 119).
- You have a right to receive instructions from a poll worker on how to use voting machine before you close the voting booth.
- You have a right to vote without an ID unless you are a first-time voter voting on a machine.
- You have a right to vote by affidavit or provisional ballot (a paper ballot in an envelope) if you have problems with your registration. For example, if poll workers cannot find your name on the list when you check in, you can still vote via affidavit or provisional ballot.
More information on NY voting rights may be found on the NY Civil Liberties Union here.
If you have any questions or experience any problems on voting day, lawyers will be ready and waiting to help and defend you at:
1 (866) OUR-VOTE.
What are New Yorkers Voting on?
New Yorkers have State and City Primary elections on Tuesday, September 13, 2016. For these elections you must register by Friday, August 19. Absentee ballots can be requested until September 6 and returned by September 12. Polls in NYC will be open from 6am-9pm. Registration, absentee ballot, and polling site info are here.
Federal
(Primaries already happened, Election November 8)
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State
(Primaries September 13, Election November 8)
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City
(nothing to vote on until next year)
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Borough
(nothing to vote on until next year)
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Disclaimer
This Voting guide was prepared by Theater in Asylum. We are not lawyers nor voting experts. If you believe something on this page is incorrect, please email us at info@theaterinasylum.com.
All expenditures for The Debates are paid for by Theater in Asylum. No actions, script lines, voting guides, or events are authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. Theater in Asylum does not endorse any candidate in this race. We simply want more people, people like you, to engage and participate. While many moments in our shows are mimicked alongside video, our way of quoting, others are departures meant to serve only as parody and satire. No copyright infringement, defamation, libel, or slander is intended. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email us at info@theaterinasylum.com. Please don’t sue us!
All expenditures for The Debates are paid for by Theater in Asylum. No actions, script lines, voting guides, or events are authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. Theater in Asylum does not endorse any candidate in this race. We simply want more people, people like you, to engage and participate. While many moments in our shows are mimicked alongside video, our way of quoting, others are departures meant to serve only as parody and satire. No copyright infringement, defamation, libel, or slander is intended. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email us at info@theaterinasylum.com. Please don’t sue us!