New York City uses Ranked Choice Voting for Primary and Special Elections for Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President and City Council. This system allows you to rank up to five candidates in order of preference instead of choosing one candidate.
Important Dates for 2025 Primary:
- Saturday, June 14: Deadline to register to vote
- Saturday, June 14 – Sunday, June 22: Early in-person voting period
- Tuesday, June 24: Primary Election Day
To be eligible to vote in NYC, you must be a US citizen, have been a NYC resident for at least 30 days, be 18 years old on election day, not be serving a prison sentence or on parole for a felony conviction, not be adjudged mentally incompetent by a court, and not claim voting rights elsewhere. You can register to vote online if you have a valid DMV ID or New York State Non-Driver Photo ID Card by mail or in person at Board of Election offices.
Register to vote here.
Learn more about registering to vote and eligibility here.
Find your designated Poll Site and view a Sample Ballot here.
What to do on Election Day. Voters must vote at their assigned poll site. Poll sites can change year to year, or even last minute, so voters are encouraged to check before they go. Polls are open from 6am – 9pm. Voters can also vote early in person via Early Voting. Voters can find their designated Poll Site and view a Sample Ballot here.
Ballot Instructions when voting. For each office using ranked choice voting, you’ll see columns numbered 1 through 5.
How to mark your ballot:
- Fill in the oval completely next to your first choice under column 1
- Fill in your second choice under column 2, and so on
- You can rank as many or as few candidates as you want (up to 5)
- You can still vote for just one candidate by leaving other columns blank
Mistakes to avoid:
- Never rank the same candidate multiple times (only the highest ranking counts)
- Never give the same ranking to multiple candidates (creates an invalid “over-vote”)
- Don’t fill in more than one oval per column
- Make sure ovals are filled completely so machines can read them
For write-in candidates, write their name on the write-in line and fill in the oval for your preferred ranking.
Counting Process. On election night, all first-choice votes are tallied. If any candidate receives more than 50% of first-choice votes, they win immediately. When no candidate reaches 50%, elimination rounds begin:
- The candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated
- Voters who picked the eliminated candidate have their ballots transferred to their next choice
- This continues until two candidates remain, with the winner being whoever has more votes
Thus, your second choice only counts if your first choice is eliminated. If both your first and second choices are out, your vote goes to your third choice, and so on.
Results won’t be final on election night. Preliminary ranked choice elimination rounds begin one week after Election Day, with weekly updates until all ballots are counted and the election is certified.
Early Voting and Mail Options. NYC offers other ways to cast your ballot, including early voting and voting via mail.
Early voting runs for nine days before Election Day, from Saturday, June 14 through Sunday, June 22, 2025. It provides shorter wait times, flexible scheduling, and the same voting experience as Election Day. You must vote at your assigned early voting site, which may be different from your Election Day polling location.
Starting this year, the New York Early Mail Voter Act allows all voters to vote early by mail. The two mail voting options include:
- Early Mail Ballot: Available to any voter, no reason required
- Absentee Ballot: Traditional option requiring valid excuse (illness, travel, work, etc.)
You can request a mail ballot:
- Online LINK HERE
- In-person at your local Board of Elections office
- Request deadline: June 14 for online/mail applications, June 23 for in-person requests
Mail ballot process:
- Mark your choices by circling them on the ballot
- Place ballot in security envelope and sign/date the outside
- Put security envelope in the return envelope marked “Official Election Mail”
- Drop in any mailbox—no postage required
Learn more about Early Voting here and Vote by Mail here.
For the most complete information, visit the NYC Votes website.
Other helpful resources includes:
- Register to vote today – LINK HERE
- Check your registration – LINK HERE
- Request for a Mail Ballot – LINK HERE
- Poll site finder – LINK HERE
- Accessibility information – LINK HERE
