New York State Board of Elections Adopts Conflict of Interest Regulations
By: Joseph T. Burns
The commissioners of the New York State Board of Elections approved new conflict of interest regulations at their September 2, 2026, meeting. These regulations come after new laws were enacted in 2024 and 2025 by the state legislature prohibiting certain conflicts of interest by board of elections (BOE) employees.
Under the newly adopted regulations, BOE employees, including part-time employees, may not have a business, trade, or financial relationship that creates an actual conflict of interest with their BOE employment or the appearance of a conflict with their BOE employment. This includes being part of a business that does certain work for candidates whose elections are overseen by the BOE which employs the employee. In addition, BOE employees are prohibited from certain employment or financial relationships with companies that do business with the BOE that employs the employee.
Candidacies for public office by BOE employees are also addressed by these regulations. The regulations do not impose a complete prohibition on BOE employees running for an office overseen by the BOE at which they are employed. These BOE employees may seek election to an office whose election is overseen by the BOE that employs the employee under certain circumstances. Specifically, the employee must receive approval by a majority vote of the commissioners of the BOE at which he or she is employed. That approval by the commissioners must be made in writing and signed and acknowledged by the commissioners and the employee.
If given that approval, the employee may not have any involvement in BOE matters that impact the election for the office he or she is seeking. This includes the filing or review of petitions for that office; the canvassing of returns for that office; and the setup, maintenance, or testing of voting machines to be used in the election in which the BOE employee is running.
While the regulations’ restrictions on candidacies by BOE employees apply to BOE employees seeking public office, they do not apply to BOE employees seeking party positions. This is significant given that many BOE employees – including commissioners and deputy commissioners of county BOEs – serve as county committee members, state committee members, judicial delegates, and alternate judicial delegates.
Some BOE employees are not covered by these regulations. Specifically, election inspectors, poll clerks, and election coordinators who are solely compensated for their work at a primary, general, or special election are not covered by these regulations.
Potential penalties for violating any of these conflict of interest provisions are also set forth in these regulations. BOE employees found in violation of these conflict of interest provisions could be suspended or terminated from the BOE position. They could also be referred to law enforcement for investigation and prosecution.
The newly adopted regulations also specifically state that a BOE employee supporting and/or endorsing a candidate for public office does not create an impermissible conflict of interest. This type of ordinary political and First Amendment-protected activity by BOE employees is not covered by these regulations.
The original 2024 conflict of interest law was approved by the state legislature on largely partisan lines with Democrats mostly supporting the bill and Republicans generally opposing it. In 2025, an amendment to the conflict of interest law to allow BOE employees to run for public office under certain circumstances passed the state legislature; this vote was also a largely partisan vote.
