New York voting rights groups are ramping up pressure on Governor Kathy Hochul to sign a bill that would automatically extend polling-site hours whenever voting is disrupted for more than an hour, whether by a machine outage, a site inaccessibility issue, or even law enforcement activity that keeps voters away from the polls. The legislation, known as the time extender bill, cleared the New York State Legislature this year, and advocates say they want it locked in before the November 2026 midterms.
The bill would trigger an automatic time extension if voting machines are down for more than an hour, according to reporting from Spectrum News. It would apply the same standard if ICE agents prevent voting for more than an hour, or if a polling site becomes inaccessible for that length of time, the outlet reports. State Senator Andrew Gounardes, who sponsored the bill in the Senate, said it would automatically extend voting time by the length of any delay exceeding one hour, though he noted an exception applies when voters did not actually lose their ability to cast a ballot during the interruption.
Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York, has been among the most vocal advocates pushing for a signature. She pointed out that polling places already stay open later when long lines remain at 9 p.m., per the outlet's reporting, arguing the bill would simply extend that same logic to other kinds of disruptions. Voting advocates say the measure would bring uniformity to how extensions are handled, since local boards of elections currently decide on their own whether to extend voting time after an interruption.
A 25-Year-Old Precedent Looms Over the Debate
Lerner has drawn a direct line between the current push and history: a New York City election was rescheduled after voting was halted by the September 11, 2001 attacks, which interrupted a primary election day in the city. She has said that tragedy interfering with voting is exactly the kind of scenario the governor should keep in mind when deciding whether to sign the bill, according to Spectrum News.
Some county boards of elections have raised concerns that polling sites could end up closing at different times within the same county under the new rules, the station reports. That worry reflects a broader tension in the legislation between statewide uniformity and the practical challenges of coordinating staff and schedules across multiple sites on a single Election Day.
How the Legislation Took Shape in Albany
The bill, formally A5846B in the Assembly, passed during the New York State Legislature's session, according to the New York State Assembly. Assemblymember Eddie Gibbs was the Assembly sponsor alongside Gounardes in the Senate. Some county boards raised concerns about different polling sites closing at different times within the same county.
An earlier version of the bill had proposed triggering automatic extensions after disruptions lasting just 15 minutes. Lawmakers later amended that threshold, raising it to more than an hour in response to administrative concerns raised by county boards of elections. The final measure would instead require a default remedy and a communication process for disruptions.
What the Bill Would Change Statutorily
The legislation creates a new section, § 3-109, in the New York Election Law. Under existing law, election officials can only order an extra day of voting for specific disasters such as fires, earthquakes, or power failures, and only when turnout has fallen below 25 percent citywide or countywide. That older provision, Section 3-108, does not cover isolated outages at individual polling sites.
Outside of that narrow disaster framework, lawyers have sought emergency judicial orders while voting is still underway or immediately after polls close, according to the Assembly memorandum. The discussion also includes voters remaining in line at 9 p.m.
The bill would also extend new protections into New York's early voting period by amending Election Law § 8-600, which requires early voting sites to operate at least eight hours daily. Early voting was established statewide in New York in 2019. The measure would create a statutory framework shifting the administrative burden of disruptions from individual voters onto election officials.
Governor's Office Reviewing, State Board Stays Quiet
Governor Hochul's office has said only that the governor will review the legislation, per Spectrum News, without indicating a timeline or a decision. The New York State Board of Elections has declined to comment on the pending legislation altogether.
Lerner and other advocates say they want the bill signed and in place well before the November 2026 elections, leaving a narrowing window for Hochul to act. Whether the governor signs before ballots start being cast remains an open question, and one that voting rights groups across the state are watching closely as the midterms approach.
