Politics & Government Reviewed July 2026
How ranked-choice voting works in NYC
You get five rankings, the count runs in rounds, and the runoff election is gone. The Charter amendment voters approved in 2019, explained from the text.
The numbers that matter
- Where it applies
- Primary and special elections for Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President, and City Council. Not November general elections (NYC Board of Elections, read July 2026)
- How it passed
- A City Charter amendment approved by voters in 2019 (NYC Board of Elections, read July 2026)
- The rankings
- Up to five candidates, in order of preference; your later choices only ever count if your earlier ones are eliminated (NYC Charter § 1057-g, read July 2026)
- Runoffs
- Abolished for these offices; the elimination rounds replace the old separate runoff election (NYC Charter § 1057-g, read July 2026)
Where it applies, and where it doesn't
First, the boundary everyone trips on. Ranked choice is for primaries and special elections only. Your November general-election ballot for mayor is still the old kind: pick one. The Board of Elections states the scope:
New York City will use ranked choice voting for Primary and Special Elections for the offices of Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President and City Council, due to an amendment in the City Charter approved by voters in 2019.
In a city where the primary usually decides the race, a primaries-only reform still reaches most of the action. Note what's not on the list: District Attorneys and state and federal offices, which run under state election law, one candidate per oval.
How the count actually works
You rank up to five candidates. If someone wins a majority of first choices outright, done. Otherwise the count becomes a series of eliminations, and the BOE's own description is the clearest one in print:
All first-choice votes are counted. If a candidate receives more than 50% of first-choice votes, that candidate wins. If no candidate earns more than 50% of first-choice votes, then counting will continue in rounds. At the end of each round, the last-place candidate is eliminated and voters who chose that candidate now have their vote counted for their next choice.
Your vote is counted for your second choice only if your first choice is eliminated.
This is the sentence that kills the most persistent myth. Ranking five candidates does not dilute your vote or give you five votes. You always have exactly one live vote; the rankings just tell the count where to move it when your candidate is out.
What the Charter itself says
The mechanics live in the Charter as section 1057-g, added by the 2019 amendment. Its definition is the system in one sentence:
The term "ranked choice voting" means the method of casting and tabulating votes in which voters rank candidates in order of preference, tabulation proceeds in rounds in which last place candidates are eliminated, and the candidate with the most votes in the final round is elected.
No run-off election shall be held for any ranked choice office.
The sentence that saves the city money. Before 2019, a close citywide primary triggered a separate runoff election weeks later, with its own poll workers, its own ballots, and reliably dismal turnout. The elimination rounds are that runoff, run instantly on the same ballots.
Why the full result takes a week or more
Election night gives you first-choice totals only. The elimination rounds wait, because they can't fairly run until the mail and affidavit ballots are in the count. The BOE's published sequence:
Unofficial election night results will be posted at the close of polls on election day. These results will include first-choice votes from early voting, election day and any valid mail ballots canvassed but will not include affidavit ballots. One week later, preliminary RCV elimination rounds will be tabulated and an unofficial report will be released.
So a candidate leading on election night can lose once the rounds run, and that is the system working, not failing. If a close race flips a week later, nobody moved any votes; the count simply finished.
The questions New Yorkers actually ask
Does ranking five candidates hurt my first choice?
No. Your vote counts for your first choice for as long as that candidate is alive in the count. Your second choice only ever comes into play if your first is eliminated, per the Board of Elections' own tabulation rules.
Does NYC use ranked-choice voting in the November general election?
No. It applies only to primary and special elections for the five city offices: Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President, and City Council. General elections, and races like District Attorney, are still pick-one.
Why do NYC election results take so long?
Election night shows only first-choice totals. The elimination rounds are first run about a week later so mail ballots can be included, and results stay unofficial until every valid ballot is in. A lead on election night can be real or an artifact; the rounds decide.
Do I have to rank five candidates?
No. You can rank one, two, or up to five. Ranking fewer just means that if all your ranked candidates are eliminated, your ballot has no say in the final rounds (the count calls this an exhausted ballot).
The documents
The public records this page draws on. Read them yourself:
This is the background. The brief is what’s happening now.
Wake up knowing your city: what changed and what it means for how you actually live here. One short read, free in your inbox every morning.
Free to start. The unsubscribe link actually works.