Voting Rights Groups Encourage New Yorkers to Get out the Early Vote

NEW YORK, NY (06/16/2023) (readMedia)-- Tomorrow is the first day of early voting in New York and also the only day a person can register to vote in person at a poll site and cast their ballot on the same day. This "Golden Day" happened because last year advocates fought to change the voter registration deadline from 25 days to 10 days before an election – this establishes one day when New Yorkers can register and vote in-person.

Early Voting starts June 17 and ends June 25th. Election Day is June 27th. Voters in New York City also can rank their top candidates for City Council. Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) gives voters the opportunity to either rank as many as five candidates in order of preference or vote for just one like they always have. If no one wins with a majority (more than 50 percent), the candidate that came in last is eliminated and voters' second choice votes get counted and so on until there's a majority winner.

RCV applies to primaries and special elections for all local offices including City Council, Borough President, Comptroller, Public Advocate and Mayor. Voters overwhelmingly approved RCV in the fall of 2019, with 74 percent of the vote.

"Common Cause/NY is encouraging all eligible New Yorkers to get out the early vote and take advantage of the Golden Day if they need to register to vote," said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause/NY. "In 2021, New Yorkers successfully voted in the largest ranked choice voting election in U.S. history and now, New Yorkers can take advantage of ranked choice voting again and vote for their preferred City Council candidates. Ranked choice voting affords voters more choice and more voice and puts power back in the hands of the people, delivering consensus majority winners every time. So New Yorkers, let's get out that early vote!"

"As New York begins early voting on Saturday, the day marks a historic moment when voters can register and cast votes on the same day. This 'golden day' and the addition of Ranked Choice Voting rightfully prioritize the voices of New Yorkers at the ballot box and encourages a stronger, more inclusive democracy. New York City residents, get out to vote for your next City Council!" said Comptroller Brad Lander.

"In a modern democracy, citizens should not be barred from political participation by surprising and unnecessary barriers to access, like premature registration cutoffs weeks before an election, said Jarret Berg, Co-Founder and Voting Rights Counsel at Vote Early New York. While there is more to be done to achieve this ideal, New York's Golden Day policy is a great pro-civic improvement that will build trust and protect civil rights."

Voters can expect to know the final winner in a few weeks -- thanks to pro-voter election laws. On Election night, we will know the first choice results of early votes, election day votes, and received valid absentee ballots. Thanks to a new, excellent law, a voter can correct or "cure" their absentee ballot over a small mistake, like forgetting their signature. The BOE contacts voters about the opportunity to fix their mistake, and corrected ballots are due back by mid July.

Due to a change in election law, New Yorkers can no longer cast a ballot on a voting machine if they have been sent an absentee ballot and then decide to vote in-person. Voters will be directed to vote via affidavit ballot instead. Your affidavit ballot will be kept separate until the election is completed, and if your absentee ballot has been received by the Board of Elections, the affidavit ballot will not be counted. This will speed up the process for counting absentee votes.

In 2021, Common Cause/NY and Rank the Vote NYC released the preliminary results of exit polling from the city's first ranked choice voting election. The poll was conducted by Edison Research throughout early voting and on Election Day, with a sample size of 1,662, both in-person and on the phone, with voters from a broad spectrum of ages, races, and education levels that reflect the demographics of the city. The poll shows that voters embraced the benefits of ranked choice voting, found it simple to understand, and want to use it in future elections.

Highlights include:

• New Yorkers embraced Ranked Choice Voting at the ballot box.
  • 83% of voters ranked at least two candidates on their ballots in the mayoral primary. The majority of those who opted not to rank did so because they only had one preferred candidate.
  • 42% of voters maximized their newfound power and ranked five candidates.
• New Yorkers understand the promise and the power of Ranked Choice Voting.
  • 51% ranked because it allowed it them to vote their values
  • 49% ranked because it allowed them to support multiple candidates
  • 41% ranked because it gave them more of a say in who gets elected
• New Yorkers found Ranked Choice Voting easy to use.
  • 95% of voters found their ballot simple to complete.
  • 78% of New Yorkers said they understood Ranked Choice Voting extremely or very well.
• New Yorkers want Ranked Choice Voting in future elections.
  • 77% of New Yorkers want Ranked Choice Voting in future local elections.
• There was little variability between ethnic groups' understanding of ranked choice voting:
  • 77% of Black voters said they understood ranked choice voting
  • 80% of Hispanic voters said they understood ranked choice voting
  • 77% of Asian voters said they understood ranked choice voting
  • 81% of white voters said they understood ranked choice voting
• New Yorkers across ethnic groups found their ballots simple to complete:
  • 93% of Black voters found their ballot simple to complete.
  • 95% of Hispanic voters found their ballot simple to complete.
  • 97% of Asian voters found their ballot simple to complete.
  • 95% of white voters found their ballot simple to complete.
• Contrary to fears that Ranked Choice Voting would harm voters by creating a knowledge tax, most voters ranked three or more candidates in the mayoral primary.
  • Overall, 72% of voters ranked three or more candidates.
  • 66% of Black voters ranked three or more candidates, 64% of Hispanic voters ranked three or more candidates, 80% of white voters ranked three or more candidates and 72% of Asian voters ranked three or more candidates.