-2- Nos. 56 & 58 2020]). In Matter of Hawatmeh v New York State Board of Elections, the Appellate Division, Third Department, rejected the First Department’s approach and reached the opposite conclusion, holding that – notwithstanding the “unprecedented circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic” – the candidate’s belated filing of a certificate of acceptance was a fatal defect (2020 NY Slip Op 02907, *1-2 [3d Dept May 15, 2020]).1 We granted leave to resolve this departmental split. We now reverse in Seawright and affirm in Hawatmeh. I Seawright On March 19, 2020, incumbent New York State Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright, a registered Democratic Party member, filed a petition designating her a candidate for the office of Member of the Assembly for the 76th Assembly District on the Democratic Party primary ballot. Seawright’s designating petition consisted of two volumes, each longer than 10 pages, and accordingly, under rules promulgated by the New York State Board of Elections (the “State Board”) and the Board of Elections in the City of New York (the “City Board”), an accompanying cover sheet was required (see 9 NYCRR 6215.1 [b]; id. at 6215.1 [e] [3]; City Board Rule C1). Seawright failed to file a 1 Similarly, in Matter of Jasikoff v Commissioners of Westchester County Board of Elections, the Appellate Division, Second Department, held that the late filing of a designating petition was a fatal defect, notwithstanding the COVID-19 pandemic, because “the filing deadlines in the Election Law are mandatory and absolute, and are not subject to the discretion of the courts or the judicial fashioning of exceptions, regardless of how reasonable they may appear to be” (2020 NY Slip Op 02742, *1 [2d Dept May 7, 2020]). That reasoning was expressly rejected by the First Department in Seawright. -2-