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By: Divya Murthy & Rachel Holliday Smith
With no federal or statewide races, 2023 is an off-year for politics — except in New York City.
Here, every City Council race in the city is technically up for grabs because of redistricting when all Council district boundaries in the five boroughs were redrawn.
The general election is scheduled for Tuesday, November 7. Unlike in New York primaries, voters will choose candidates by traditional voting, not by the ranked choice method.
Here’s what you need to know now:
City Council
Voters will get to decide who holds each of the 51 City Council seats this year. The districts were redrawn last year following the 2020 nationwide census, which revealed changes in the city’s population.
You can also explore your new Council district — including ethnic data, recent local voting history and how the population changed in redistricting — with THE CITY’s Know Your District tool.
Many Council seats were all but decided in June’s primaries; in deep-blue districts, Democrats who won in June will likely sail to easy victory. But in several swing districts in The Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn, tight races that will determine how many seats Republicans control in the Council. Here are the seven races to watch.
Wait, didn’t we just vote for Councilmembers? Yes. Here’s why: The city’s charter says that every 20 years, City Council members will serve a two-year term instead of a traditional four-year term to allow “new challenges” to incumbents during the redistricting shuffle. You can think of it as a four-year term split into two — except that anyone who wins the first two-year term is not guaranteed a second win. (Council members are limited to serve no more than two four-year terms, per a 2010 referendum.)
District Attorney: The Bronx, Queens and Staten Island
Three boroughs have elections to choose new district attorneys, the top local prosecutor in the county. In The Bronx, Queens and Staten Island, the incumbents — Darcel Clark, Melinda Katz and Michael McMahon, respectively — will have to win re-election. (FYI: There are no term limits for district attorneys in New York City.)
Only Katz, the Democratic incumbent in Queens, will have competition on the ballot, however. Michael Mossa will appear on the Republican and Conservative party lines and George Grasso will appear on the “Public Safety” party line in the Queens DA race. In The Bronx and Staten Island, Clark and McMahon will each appear on the ballot with no challengers.
Others: Judges and delegates
There are a few other races that may pop up on your ballot, including Civil Court judge and delegates to the judicial convention. Read more about those jobs and what they do in our guide and check precisely what’s on your ballot by looking up your address through the Board of Elections here, then clicking “View Sample Ballot” on the top right.
Ballot proposals
There are two ballot proposal questions on all New York ballots this November. Gothamist broke down what they’re all about in this guide, including why two questions about how smaller municipalities spend money will appear on New York City ballots. (Answer: They’re about stuff in the state constitution, therefore must be considered by voters in the entire state.)
Key dates in 2023
For the general election: October 23. The last day to request an absentee ballot online or by mail. Here’s how to do that. October 28 – November 5 is the early voting period. November 6th is the last day to request an absentee ballot in person.
