Justin Timberlake learned about Tennessee’s ban on voting-booth selfies the hard way, so New Yorkers, consider yourself forewarned: Ballot selfies are not allowed on Election Day. As tempted as you might be to let your followers know, in that very moment, with visual evidence, that you’ve filled in that bubble for Hillary or the Donald, it is illegal.
Ballot selfies violate a New York State law that prohibits photographs in polling stations and the sharing of completed ballots. A federal judge heard a challenge to the selfie ban — the plaintiff argued it violated free speech — but ultimately upheld the law. He ruled Thursday that, with only a few days until the election, a change in regulations could overwhelm the polling stations and the Board of Elections. (Which, at least in the city, some officials don’t have much faith in already.) Ballot selfies, the judge said, would be “a recipe for delays and a disorderly election, as well-intentioned voters either took the perfectly posed selfie or struggled with their rarely-used smartphone camera.”
Technically, a voting selfie could get you a $1,000 fine, or up to a year in jail. So resist the temptation to photograph the ballot. Instead, just take a selfie with your “I Voted” sticker and whichever of the hashtags suits you best.
