Several New Yorkers who received their absentee ballots in the mail were surprised to find the wrong name printed on their return envelopes. It’s unclear how many New Yorkers have been affected by the glitch, but the issue appears to be widespread in Brooklyn, where more than 140,000 absentee ballots have gone out across the borough.
“I have heard from dozens of voters individually today, all concentrated in Brooklyn, that they have received return ballot envelopes that are not in their name,” New York elections lawyer Ali Najmi told The Washington Post.
The New York City Board of Elections claims that Phoenix Graphics, a vendor with a contract to print and mail absentee ballots for voters in Queens and Brooklyn, is responsible for the error. The controversy expectedly came up at Tuesday's press conference with Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Asked about people in Brooklyn receiving absentee ballots with wrong information, ?@melissadderosa? says “to say that we are concerned about this, is the understatement of the year.”@NYGovCuomo says he is open to reforming ?@NYSBOE?, but says legislature must act. pic.twitter.com/o8h4xjS0nQ
— Zack Fink (@ZackFinkNews) September 29, 2020
This is why we are urging everyone to vote safely in-person.
— New York GOP (@NewYorkGOP) September 29, 2020
We just learned of a ballot harvesting scheme, and every day NYers are reading story after disastrous story.
If you vote in person, your vote is secure and it can't be stolen on a technicality.https://t.co/PpC6i8GBYO
“It’s a major problem," Brooklyn Heights resident Jiong Wang told the New York Post. "This is not stoking confidence in the election system."
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