Good morning. It’s Tuesday. Today we’ll look at Election Day in New York, from the logistics to the races to watch after the polls close.
Soon it will all be over but the counting.
But first there is the voting. The polls in New York City will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Citizens Union Foundation notes that if you are in line by 9 p.m., you will be allowed to vote.
And the lines? Expect them, the New York City Board of Elections said flatly on Monday.
They may be longer than in 2020.
Here is why. Some 660,000 New Yorkers voted by mail in that election, a higher-than-usual number because of the pandemic. “Mail ballots won’t be as common this year,” said Ben Weinberg, the director of public policy for Citizens Union, a nonpartisan group dedicated to governmental transparency and accountability, “so we should expect long lines at poll sites.” The Board of Elections said it would post an interactive map showing waiting times at poll sites today. Still, budget additional time in your day.
Voting by mail
It’s too late now, unless you requested a mail ballot by Oct. 26. If you did and you haven’t sent it back, the envelope must be postmarked no later than today. You can also drop it off at any polling place or at a Board of Elections office.
Who, what and where
NYC Votes, the Campaign Finance Board’s voter outreach program, mailed millions of voter guides outlining who is running for which offices and what else is on the ballot. If someone in your household somehow threw your voter guides away — no finger-pointing, please — you can look at the group’s website.
You can find your polling site or look at a sample ballot in New York City here, or call the Board of Elections at 866-VOTE-NYC (866-868-3692.) You can check on whether you are registered to vote here.
Early voting
In New York City there are 1.1 million voters who won’t need to line up today — they voted early, starting on Oct. 26.
The Board of Elections said that Sunday, the last day of early voting, was the highest early-voting day of the three elections since 2020, when New York began allowing ballots to be cast before Election Day. The board also said that Brooklyn had the largest early turnout this year, with 345,840 early ballots cast. Staten Island led with the highest turnout as a percentage of registered voters, with 26.9 percent. Just under 92,000 Staten Islanders voted early.
And the other boroughs? In Manhattan, there were 282,533 early ballots; in the Bronx, 113,955; and in Queens, 255,102.
But the citywide early-vote total was almost 30,000 fewer below the count four years ago — 29,728 to be exact.
Why the ballot is like a pancake
You’re supposed to flip it.
Five citywide ballot questions and a statewide ballot question that is intended to protect reproductive rights are on the other side.
The five citywide proposals, which were put on the ballot by Mayor Eric Adams’s charter revision commission, figure in a power struggle between him and the City Council, as Adams and his inner circle face federal indictments and investigations.
Opponents say that the proposals would erode the Council’s power. A coalition called No Power Grab NYC organized rallies against the measures and oversaw voter outreach efforts. Another group, New Yorkers Defending Democracy, spent more than $150,000 to push back against the five proposals and ran an internet advertisement that began: “Mayor Adams can’t be trusted with the power he has, so why give him more?”
Races to watch
New York is not a swing state in the presidential race. But six swing districts from Long Island to Syracuse could affect which party controls the House beginning in January. Republicans now hold five of those seats. Here’s a quick look at the six races, by district:
New York 1: Representative Nick LaLota, a first-term Republican, is facing a challenge from John Avlon, a former CNN anchor and former editor in chief of The Daily Beast, in a district that includes the Hamptons. LaLota has highlighted his effort — so far unsuccessful — to lift the $10,000 limit on state and local tax deductions that were imposed under Donald Trump. LaLota, responding to attacks from Avlon, has moved to distance himself from the Republicans on abortion.
New York 4: In a rematch of the 2022 lineup in this Long Island district, Representative Anthony D’Esposito, a Republican, is again facing Laura Gillen, a Democrat and former Hempstead supervisor. D’Esposito, who has built his campaign around crime and inflation, has ethics troubles that Democrats say are part of a long tradition among Republicans in Nassau County. The New York Times reported in September that he had put the daughter of his longtime fiancée — as well as his mistress — on the congressional payroll at the same time.
New York 17: Mondaire Jones, a former Democratic congressman, is challenging Representative Mike Lawler, a Republican who won the seat two years ago and has the support of labor unions and a large block of ultra-Orthodox Jewish voters this time. Also on the ballot is Anthony Frascone, who helped Republicans win the left-leaning Working Families Party line to draw votes from Jones, who has pounded Lawler for endorsing Trump.
New York 18: Representative Pat Ryan, a Democrat, is facing a challenge from Alison Esposito, a conservative former New York City police officer who ran for lieutenant governor two years ago, in this district in the mid-Hudson Valley. Esposito has blasted Ryan and the Democrats on crime and immigration. Ryan has not always toed the Democrats’ line: He called on President Biden to step aside a week after his disastrous debate appearance against Trump in June.
New York 19: In a district that stretches from the Hudson Valley to the Finger Lakes, Representative Marc Molinaro, a Republican, is facing Josh Riley, a Democrat whose fund-raising pitches have featured David Letterman and former Senator Al Franken. Riley’s ads mention 13 congressional votes that Molinaro cast on measures that would make it more difficult to obtain an abortion, although Molinaro has said that he is against a national ban.
New York 22: Representative Brandon Williams, a conservative freshman Republican in a district that includes Syracuse and Utica, is widely considered the most vulnerable incumbent congressman in the country. Redistricting has boosted Democrats’ hopes for a pickup. Their candidate is John Mannion, who spent decades teaching high school biology before he was elected to the State Senate four years ago.
Weather
Expect a partly sunny sky, gentle breeze and a high near 72. Tonight, the sky will become partly cloudy, with temperatures in the low 60s.
ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING
Suspended for Election Day.
The latest New York news
A forced evacuation: A court decision will determine whether tenants in some New York City buildings can return to their homes nearly one year after being forced to evacuate under orders from the Department of Buildings.
Breuer building renovations: The former home of the Whitney Museum on Madison Avenue will become Sotheby’s new global headquarters. An architectural firm known for its transformation of existing structures like the Park Avenue Armory will do the renovation.
Investigating looted artifacts: Prosecutors in Manhattan obtained an arrest warrant for Edoardo Almagià, a high-profile, Princeton-educated antiquities dealer accused of trafficking thousands of illicit artifacts valued at tens of millions of dollars.
METROPOLITAN diary
Standpipe Hydrant
Dear Diary:
It was 1980, the summer after my freshman year in college. Ten of us crammed into my parents’ station wagon, and I drove over the George Washington Bridge, down the West Side and to the Village.
When we piled out of the car, the lace on one of my sneakers was loose. I tied it on a standpipe fire hydrant next to where we had parked the car.
We met up with some other friends from Jersey, hit the parks, the sidewalk vendors and a bar or two (the drinking age was 18 then).
Tony left first. We watched him and his girlfriend walk away.
“And that was the last time they saw Tony,” I said for no particular reason.
Eugene told me to shut up.
Later, after saying goodbye to some friends, we walked back to the car.
As we got close to it, my heart sank. My keys weren’t in my pocket. This was definitely going to be one of those long, long days.
But no. Phil gave a shout: The keys were on the standpipe where I had tied my laces.
— Mitchell Rosen
Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Send submissions here and read more Metropolitan Diary here.
Glad we could get together here. See you tomorrow. — J.B.
P.S. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. You can find all our puzzles here.
Makaelah Walters and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at [email protected].
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The post It’s Election Day. Here’s What to Know. appeared first on New York Times.
