By Rich Bockmann
The city Board of Elections voted Tuesday to increase the size of the fonts printed on the ballots for the Nov. 6 general election after some voters complained that the ballots used in the primary earlier this month were difficult to read.
During the September primary, fonts as small as 7.5 points had been used at some polling locations. Board of Elections spokeswoman Valerie Vasquez said the city is required to print one-sided ballots, and in cases where there were primaries with multiple offices and multiple candidates, smaller fonts had to be used to get them all to fit.
She said the board did have the option of printing the names on multiple pages but found that would have been cost prohibitive. With fewer names on the ballot for the general election, the board decided Tuesday it would be able to accommodate a font increase up to 9 points.
“It really represents the board’s best effort to make all the candidates’ names and all the languages as large as possible in order to comply with the New York State election laws,” Vasquez said.
The deadline to register to vote for the general election is Oct. 9.
Reach reporter Rich Bockmann by e-mail at rbockmann@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
