Survivors of Domestic Violence Still Face Obstacles to Voting

There's good news and bad news for domestic violence survivors who want to vote in New York. 

First, the positives. Although voter registration information is normally public, domestic violence survivors are one of the few protected classes who can keep their addresses and personal data private. That's critical for survivors who need to stay off the radar of abusive partners, according to advocates. 

"These are women who are being threatened, whose lives are at risk, who need to be able to maintain their anonymity," said State Assemblymember Amy Paulin, the former Executive Director of My Sisters' Place, a domestic violence and sex trafficking resource center.

However, voter anonymity can only be maintained with a court order. The law, which was expanded last session, used to require survivors to go to the New York State Supreme Court to get approval. Now, victims are also allowed to get an order through Family and County court. 

Perhaps because of the court requirement, registration for private voter registration is incredibly low. Less than 100 survivors have applied to keep their voter registrations off of public records, according to a spokesman for the State Board of Elections.

There are other options for survivors who want to discreetly cast a ballot. People who have experienced domestic violence can go to their county board of elections and apply for a special ballot that can be filled out up to a week before Election Day. Different counties may have different requirements, but employees at most boards of elections in New York City confirmed that no court order or identification was required to pick up a special ballot.

For survivors who don't feel safe going to a physical location to cast a ballot, the options are limited. Unless they are living outside of their county of residence, survivors cannot receive an absentee ballot. Assemblymember Amy Paulin, who represents part of Westchester, said without that added security, domestic violence survivors continue to face disenfranchisement.

"The victim is not going to expose themselves, they're not going to go to vote. They're just not going to bother," she said. "They'd be putting themselves in harm's way."

A law to expand voting protections to include same-county absentee ballots, sponsored by Paulin in the state Assembly, failed to pass the Senate last year. The lawmakers who voted against it may not have enough context to understand who the measure would serve, said Paulin.

"I would hate to think that someone didn't care, so I have to believe that they don't know," she said. "It's lucky that they're not domestic violence victims, and it's lucky that they don't know any. Because if they did, they would know that the bill would be important to pass."