New York City voters will be using the new ranked-choice voting system for the June party primary elections for Mayor, Comptroller, Public Advocate, Borough President, and City Council. Voters will be able to rank up to five candidates in order of preference, and ranked-choice voting eliminates the runoff elections that used to occur in some cases for citywide offices. Watch the show below from Gotham Gazette and Manhattan Neighborhood Network for what you need to know about ranked-choice voting, featuring Gotham Gazette editor Ben Max, Brigid Bergin of WNYC radio, Jeff Mays of The New York Times, and Allie Swatek of the Campaign Finance Board, which is tasked with voter education about RCV.
arrow A voter during the October 2020 early voting period Mary Altaffer/AP/Shutterstock
After four special elections in different parts of New York City, a small sample of voters have had their first taste of ranked choice voting. The system, adopted by voters in 2019, took effect at the start of this year and has its advocates and detractors. With nothing set to stop its broader implementation, a much wider pool of voters will use the new voting system in the upcoming citywide primary election in June.
(Early voting runs June 12 - 20; Primary Day is June 22nd.)
Candidates, community groups, and government institutions like the New York City Board of Elections, and the New York City Campaign Finance Board are gearing up to inundate voters with information about how the system works.