Early voting begins Saturday in 3rd Congressional District special election

The nine-day early-voting period begins Saturday in the special election to fill the unexpired term of expelled Rep. George Santos in a contest that could help determine the path of Congress.

Early voting for the 3rd Congressional District seat, which includes parts of Nassau and Queens counties, runs through Feb. 11 at select polling sites. Polls will be open for traditional voting on Feb. 13.

Republican-backed Mazi Melesa Pilip, of Great Neck, a two-term Nassau legislator, faces Democrat Tom Suozzi, of Glen Cove, the former congressman who previously held the 3rd District seat. Each was chosen by party leaders.

Gov. Kathy Hochul called for the special election to fill Santos’ term after Santos, a Republican, was forced from Congress on Dec. 1. A House ethics report accused him of defrauding campaign donors for personal profit. Santos also faces federal indictments related to his campaign fundraising and spending and left a litany of lies about his background that made international news.

The term runs until the end of this year. In November, voters will go to the polls again to determine who will fill a full two-year term for the job, which pays $174,000 a year.

Here are the basics about voting in the special election.

Who can vote?

All registered voters in the district are eligible to vote.

Voters can use a state Board of Elections online lookup portal (voterlookup.elections.ny.gov) to determine if they are registered, to identify their election districts, polling place location and party affiliation, if any.

Nassau County residents may also call 516-571-VOTE (8683) to determine if they are eligible to vote.

Where is the district?

The district covers the North Shore of Nassau County and parts of southeastern Nassau, including Oyster Bay Cove, Levittown, Glen Cove, Port Washington, Great Neck, Massapequa Park and Farmingdale. The district also includes the eastern part of Queens, including Queens Village.

When can Nassau County voters cast ballots during early voting?

• Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Monday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Tuesday, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Feb. 8, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Feb. 9, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Feb. 10, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Feb. 11, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

When can Queens voters cast ballots in person during the early voting?

• Saturday through Monday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Feb. 8, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Feb. 9, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Feb. 10, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Feb. 11, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where can Nassau County voters cast ballots?

All voters can use a state Board of Elections online lookup portal (voterlookup.elections.ny.gov) to determine their voting locations.

In Nassau County, early voting polling sites are the Oyster Bay Ice Rink in Bethpage, Glen Cove City Hall, Great Neck House in Great Neck, Hicksville Levittown Hall in Hicksville, Massapequa Town Hall, the Nassau County Board of Elections, the Plainview Mid-Island Y JCC in Plainview, the Port Washington Public Library, Gayle Community Center in Roslyn Heights, the Williston Park American Legion and the Yes We Can Community Center in Westbury.

Where can Queens voters cast ballots?

In Queens, voters may vote early at the Creedmoor Hospital at 79-25 Winchester Blvd., at Korean Community Services at 203-05 32nd Ave., Queensborough Community College at 222-05 56th Ave., and at St. Luke Roman Catholic Church, 16-34 Clintonville St.

Queens voters also can find their closest polling places online at the findmypollsite.vote.nyc portal of the New York City Board of Elections.

What is the party enrollment of the district?

The district had 224,741 enrolled Democrats, 161,624 enrolled Republicans, 5,348 enrolled Conservatives and 161,057 who are not enrolled in a political party, according the November enrollment statistics of the state Board of Elections.

Who can vote early by mail?

Any registered voter may apply for an early mail-in ballot under a 2023 law. No reason is needed for choosing to vote by mail instead of in person.

Voters may also vote using the more traditional absentee ballot, in which voters provide a reason for why they can’t vote in person, such as being away from their district on voting days or illness.

How do you vote early by mail?

Early-voting mail applications are available through the state portal, in person at the local county board of elections, or by downloading the application from the state   Board of Elections website (elections.ny.gov).

Applications for early voting by mail and applications for absentee ballots by mail, email, online, portal or fax must be received by the local boards of election no later than Saturday. 

The last day to apply in person at a board of elections is Feb. 12.

  Anyone who receives an absentee ballot application isn’t eligible to vote at polling sites during early voting or on Feb. 13, the traditional Election Day.

Votes by mail must be postmarked or delivered by hand to the board of elections no later than Feb. 13 and received by the local board of elections no longer than seven days after the election. Voters also may deliver their mail-in ballot during early voting to one of the select polling places or at their traditional polling site before 9 p.m. on Feb. 13.

The last day for a board of elections to receive a ballot by mail is Feb. 20, as long as the ballot is postmarked no later than Feb. 13.

Editor's note -- An early version of this story omitted the Gayle Community Center in Roslyn Heights from the Nassau polling site list.

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.