How (and when) to cast your vote in the June NYC Primary Election

We have a big primary election coming up next month in New York City. Nearly every City Council seat is up for grabs, along with major city-wide positions like Mayor and Comptroller. The General Election is in November, but this Primary will be a fierce one, with packed fields of several candidates in each race. For many races, the outcome could, in essence, be decided in the June Primary.

That’s why we want to make sure that you have all of the info you need to cast your vote!

Click here to see who CWA is endorsing in the June Primary Election.

How to Cast Your Vote

All NYC voters have three options for voting this year:

Vote by Mail

• All registered voters can request an absentee ballot (under the "temporary illness" excuse; concern about COVID-19 is considered “temporary illness,” even if you have not been exposed). Click here to request an absentee ballot.

• Once you receive your ballot, fill it out as soon as possible and return it by mail, or by dropping it at a polling site or your local Board of Elections office (scroll down to the bottom of the page to find your local BOE office).

• Your ballot MUST be postmarked by June 22.

Early Voting

• Saturday, June 12 - Sunday, June 20

Election Day

• Tuesday, June 22

Ranked Choice Voting

New York City voters have a new way to vote in primary and special elections this year! We now have the option to rank our top five candidates in primary & special elections for NYC offices, giving us more power and a greater voice in who our elected leaders are.

Here’s how it works:

1. You can rank as many candidates as you'd like, up to five. If there's only one candidate you like, you can vote for them and only them. If you like only two, you can rank two, etc. While your vote is most powerful if you rank five candidates, it’s up to you how many to rank!

2. To win, a candidate must receive a majority of the total votes (50% + 1).

3. After all the votes are in, the first-choice votes will be tallied. If no candidate wins a majority, the last place candidate is eliminated. Each voter whose first choice candidate was eliminated will then have their second choice pick get their vote.

4. The process is repeated until there is a winner of the majority of votes.

Ranked Choice Voting is easy! Find the name of your first choice and fill in the oval next to their name in the “1st Choice” column. Then find the name of your second choice, and fill in the oval next to their name in the “2nd Choice” column, and so on.

Ranked Choice Voting makes sure that whoever is elected wins with a broad base of support and more than 50% of the vote. The winning candidate typically has strong first-choice support and receives many second and third-place votes.

This means that even if your favorite candidate doesn’t win, you still have a say in who’s elected by ranking the candidates. Ranking a second, third, etc. choice will not hurt your number one candidate.

You can learn more about Ranked Choice Voting at rankthevotenyc.org.

Now more than ever, as New York City works to emerge from the COVID-19 crisis, our local elected leaders have a huge and direct impact on our lives. It’s important for us to have elected leaders who will fight for our communities and put working families first - so make sure you request your mail-in ballot or make your plan to vote between June 12 and June 22.