Voters in Bushwick, Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Ridgewood choose a governor, an attorney general, a comptroller and a member of Congress on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and decide five changes to the city charter. Polls are open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
At least five seats on North Brooklyn and Ridgewood ballots will have new lawmakers in January. Rep. Nydia Velázquez and state Sen. Michael Gianaris are retiring, Assemblymember Claire Valdez is leaving the 37th Assembly District to run for Velázquez’s seat, Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar lost her June primary to David Orkin, and Assemblymember Erik Martin Dilan lost his to Christian Celeste Tate, according to certified Board of Elections results. In the 56th Assembly District, Assemblymember Stefani Zinerman, who lost her primary to Eon Huntley, is running a write-in campaign.
Most of the area’s state legislative races have one candidate. In Bushwick, all three do: Julia Salazar for state Senate, Maritza Davila in the 53rd Assembly District and Tate in the 54th.
Below is every race on the ballot in these neighborhoods, according to the Board of Elections’ contest list, followed by what to know before you go.
On every ballot
Every ballot in the city carries the races for governor, state comptroller and attorney general. Gov. Kathy Hochul, with Adrienne E. Adams for lieutenant governor, is on the Democratic and Working Families lines, against Bruce A. Blakeman and Todd Hood on the Republican, Conservative and Vote Affordable lines. Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli (Democratic, Working Families) faces Joseph Hernandez (Republican, Conservative), and Attorney General Letitia James (Democratic, Working Families) faces Saritha Komatireddy (Republican, Conservative). Blakeman has called Hochul Mamdani’s “puppet” and has said he would let local police hand immigrants to ICE again.
In the race’s final days, President Donald Trump urged New Yorkers to vote for Blakeman in a tele-rally Saturday, and Blakeman told a rally in Middle Village not to believe “those phony polls” showing Hochul ahead. Hochul closed her campaign Monday night at a rally in Williamsburg. Uber gave $14.96 million to two committees backing Hochul, and two Madison Square Garden companies controlled by the Dolan family gave $2.7 million to a committee backing Blakeman, state Board of Elections filings show.
Five proposed amendments to the city charter, drafted by the Commission on Government Efficiency that Mayor Zohran Mamdani convened in May, are on every ballot in the city. The sample ballot tells voters, “Remember to vote both sides.” The full ballot text is posted online.
Citizens Union recommends a yes vote on all five charter questions. Reinvent Albany supports the first four and opposes Question 5, Common Cause New York opposes Question 1 and supports Questions 2, 4 and 5, and the Municipal Art Society opposes Question 3 and supports Questions 1, 2 and 4, according to each group’s published guide. The organizations that submitted statements for or against each question are listed in the city Campaign Finance Board’s NYC Votes voter guide. The League of Women Voters of the City of New York lists pros and cons for each question without recommending a vote.
Question 1 appears on the ballot as “Proposed Charter Amendment: Speed Up Process for Granting a Revocable Consent to Use Public Space.” A yes vote would make public hearings optional rather than required before the city lets a property owner use public space for things like benches, ramps, planters and cafes, end the requirement to publish hearing notices in newspapers, and remove the City Council’s power to disapprove a sidewalk cafe, while the community board, council member and borough president would still be notified and could comment, according to the official abstract. The commission’s final report says sidewalk cafe applications now take six to eight months and the single combined process would take about two months, and the abstract says the changes would take effect March 1, 2027.
Citizens Union, Reinvent Albany and the Municipal Art Society support Question 1. Common Cause New York recommends a no vote, saying, “Government efficiency is important, but it should not come at the expense of public participation and legislative oversight.” In the NYC Votes guide, statements in support came from Abundance New York, DRUM Beats, Long Island City Partnership, the Municipal Art Society, New York City Democratic Socialists of America, the New York City Hospitality Alliance, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Open Plans, Regional Plan Association and Reinvent Albany, and statements in opposition came from the Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY) and D9 Harlem Votes, according to the Campaign Finance Board.
Question 2 appears on the ballot as “Proposed Charter Amendment: Reduce City Contractor Paperwork; Require Regular Meetings of Procurement Policy Board.” A yes vote would let the Procurement Policy Board simplify the questionnaire city contractors must fill out, including shorter versions for small businesses and smaller contracts, require the board to meet at least quarterly, drop a required yearly hearing on agencies’ client services plans and let the mayor delegate approval of noncompetitively awarded contracts worth more than $5 million to agency chief contracting officers, according to the official abstract. The commission’s final report says the ballot changes would save up to 30 days on procurements.
Citizens Union, Reinvent Albany, Common Cause New York and the Municipal Art Society support Question 2. Common Cause says, “Reducing unnecessary administrative burdens can help smaller businesses and nonprofits participate in City contracting.” In the NYC Votes guide, statements in support came from Abundance New York, DBIA NYC Metro Region, DRUM Beats, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, New York City Democratic Socialists of America, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Prospect Park Alliance and Reinvent Albany. The only organization listed in opposition, D9 Harlem Votes, said, “Reducing contractor paperwork should not come with reduced public review or unclear changes in oversight responsibilities.”
Question 3 appears on the ballot as “Proposed Charter Amendment: Speed Up Street Safety Projects, Disposition of Unused City Property, Office Leasing.” A yes vote would end requirements that agencies consulted on major street projects, which include adding or removing any bike lane, confer with anyone beyond the agency head, and would let the Department of Transportation start urgent safety work before notifying local officials and the community board, according to the official abstract. It would also let the city sell or lease lots under 10,000 square feet and development rights over city-owned landmarks through a faster land use review that skips the City Council, and remove the City Planning Commission hearing and the Council’s power to disapprove city office leases. The commission’s final report says the changes would speed street safety projects, including bike lanes, by at least 33% and cut the time to authorize the sale of certain small city lots from seven months to 90 days.
The Municipal Art Society recommends a no vote on Question 3, saying it “could make it easier to sell or transfer valuable public land and development rights without sufficient safeguards to ensure lasting public benefits.” Citizens Union and Reinvent Albany recommend yes while objecting to how the question is packaged: Citizens Union says it “improperly bundles unrelated policy areas,” and Reinvent Albany says the street proposals are “improperly paired with a completely unrelated policy question.” Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets backed it in a Nov. 2 release, in which Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Ben Furnas said, “On Election Day, New Yorkers have an opportunity to cut the red tape, get our street safety projects moving, and make our city a leader in street safety once again.” Common Cause New York takes no position.
In the NYC Votes guide, statements on Question 3 in support came from Abundance New York, CIDNY, DRUM Beats, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, New York City Democratic Socialists of America, New York Housing Conference, Open New York, Prospect Park Alliance, Regional Plan Association, Reinvent Albany, Riders Alliance, Rise and Resist Elevator Action Group and Transportation Alternatives, and statements in opposition came from D9 Harlem Votes, Long Island City Partnership and the Municipal Art Society.
Question 4 appears on the ballot as “Proposed Charter Amendment: Simplify Building Permitting and Move Waterfront Permitting to Department of Buildings.” A yes vote would direct the Department of Buildings, working with the Department of Environmental Protection, the Fire Department and the Department of Transportation, to build a single system for construction permit applications and approvals by 2030 or a later date the department determines is feasible, let the Buildings commissioner appoint more officials who can approve construction documents, and move waterfront construction permitting from the Department of Small Business Services to Buildings, according to the official abstract. The commission’s final report says the change would bring 40 approvals from 18 separate offices and agencies into one place.
Citizens Union, Reinvent Albany, Common Cause New York and the Municipal Art Society support Question 4. In the NYC Votes guide, statements in support came from Abundance New York, DBIA NYC Metro Region, DRUM Beats, the Municipal Art Society, New York City Democratic Socialists of America, New York Housing Conference, Open New York, Prospect Park Alliance, Regional Plan Association and Reinvent Albany, and the only organization listed in opposition was D9 Harlem Votes.
Question 5 appears on the ballot as “Proposed Charter Amendment: Set Contribution Targets for Rainy Day Fund to Promote Sufficient Budgetary Reserves.” A yes vote would set a target for the city to hold 12% of the prior fiscal year’s tax revenue in its rainy day fund and other reserve funds, and would require the mayor’s Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the comptroller, to publish by May 2027 a method for calculating deposits, which would still need approval in the city budget, according to the official abstract. It would also bar the city from withdrawing more than half of the fund unless the mayor certifies a compelling fiscal need, matching state law. A 2022 report from the city comptroller’s office recommended a 16% target to stabilize tax revenues “for the full length of an average recession.”
Reinvent Albany recommends a no vote on Question 5, saying, “Sadly, this is not the rainy day fund New York City so badly needs to prevent catastrophic budget cuts and layoffs if revenues plunge,” and it is the only organization listed in opposition in the NYC Votes guide. Citizens Union and Common Cause New York recommend yes; Common Cause says, “Establishing clearer rules for maintaining and accessing financial reserves can make fiscal decisions more predictable and subject to public scrutiny.” Statements in support in the NYC Votes guide came from D9 Harlem Votes, DRUM Beats, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and New York City Democratic Socialists of America.
Congress
The 7th Congressional District covers Bushwick, Williamsburg, Greenpoint and Ridgewood and part of Bedford-Stuyvesant. The ballot lists Claire Valdez on the Democratic and Working Families lines, Melvin Rivera on the Republican and Conservative lines and Priscilla Ghaznavi on the Our Future line. Valdez voted early with her DSA slate mates in Ridgewood on Oct. 27.
The 8th Congressional District covers most of Bedford-Stuyvesant. Rep. Hakeem S. Jeffries (Democratic) faces Lewis Mizrahi (Republican, Conservative).
State Senate
The 18th District includes Bushwick and parts of Williamsburg and Ridgewood. The 59th includes Greenpoint and part of Williamsburg, the 12th includes most of Ridgewood, and the 25th and 20th include Bedford-Stuyvesant.
State Senate, 18th District: Julia Salazar, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate. Salazar pushed this year to tax billionaires in the state budget.
State Senate, 59th District: Kristen Gonzalez, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate.
State Senate, 12th District: Aber Kawas (Democratic) and Han-Khon To (Republican).
State Senate, 25th District: Jabari Brisport, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate.
State Senate, 20th District: Zellnor Y. Myrie, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate.
Assembly
Assembly, 50th District: Emily Gallagher, on the Democratic line, is the only candidate.
Assembly, 53rd District: Maritza Davila, on the Democratic line, is the only candidate.
Assembly, 54th District: Christian Celeste Tate, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate. Tate beat Dilan in the June primary, 4,192 votes to 2,550, according to certified Board of Elections results.
Assembly, 37th District: Samantha Kattan, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate.
Assembly, 38th District: David Orkin (Democratic, Working Families) and Ruben D. Cruz II (Republican, Queens United).
Assembly, 28th District: Andrew D. Hevesi (Democratic), Jonathan Rinaldi (No Kings) and David J. Kemp (4 Our Immigrants).
Assembly, 52nd District: Jo Anne Simon (Democratic, Working Families) and Brett Wynkoop (Republican, Conservative).
Assembly, 56th District: Eon Huntley, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate on the ballot. Assemblymember Stefani Zinerman, who lost the June primary to Huntley, is running a write-in campaign.
Assembly, 57th District: Phara Souffrant Forrest (Democratic, Working Families) and Yolanda Allison (Republican).
Assembly, 55th District: Latrice M. Walker, on the Democratic and Working Families lines, is the only candidate.
Judges
Brooklyn voters will elect four state Supreme Court justices to 14-year terms from five candidates, and all four Democratic nominees also appear on the Republican line, according to the Board of Elections’ contest list. Brooklyn ballots also carry four countywide Civil Court seats, and Ridgewood ballots carry three Queens Supreme Court seats and three Queens countywide Civil Court seats. Ballots across the area also carry a Civil Court race for the voter’s municipal court district. No Surrogate’s Court seat is on the ballot in Brooklyn or Queens this year, according to the contest list.
The state Supreme Court is a trial court with what the state Constitution calls “general original jurisdiction in law and equity,” so it can hear civil cases of any kind and size, and in New York City it has exclusive jurisdiction over “crimes prosecuted by indictment.” Under the Constitution, justices serve 14-year terms starting Jan. 1 after their election, so those elected this year serve through 2040. Under state election law, party nominees for the court are chosen at judicial district conventions, not in primaries.
Brooklyn, state Supreme Court, 2nd Judicial District, four seats: Betsey Jean-Jacques (Democratic, Republican, Conservative; the Democratic line prints her name as Betsey Jean Jacques), Hemalee J. Patel (Democratic, Republican), William D. Spain Jr. (Conservative), Sherveal Mimes (Democratic, Republican, Conservative) and Lola Waterman (Democratic, Republican, Conservative).
The New York City Bar Association’s Judiciary Committee rated Jean-Jacques, Mimes, Patel and Waterman “Approved” and Spain “Not Approved,” according to ratings the City Bar published Oct. 23. The City Bar uses only those two ratings and says candidates rated Approved “have affirmatively demonstrated qualifications necessary for the performance of the duties of the position.” Every rating below comes from the same City Bar release.
The Civil Court of the City of New York hears lawsuits seeking money or personal property worth up to $50,000 and cases brought to recover possession of real estate and remove tenants, under the state Constitution and the New York City Civil Court Act. Its judges serve 10-year terms, according to the Constitution, and the Board of Elections lists some Civil Court seats as countywide and others by municipal court district.
Brooklyn, Civil Court, countywide, four seats: Danielle A. Noel, Linda Lo Cascio, Celeste Felix and Christine G. Ortiz, all on the Democratic line and the only candidates. The City Bar rated all four Approved.
Which municipal court district race appears on a ballot depends on the voter’s address, and the sample ballot at findmypollsite.vote.nyc shows it. In North Brooklyn, the 3rd Municipal Court District covers Williamsburg, Greenpoint, East Williamsburg, most of western Bushwick and part of western Bedford-Stuyvesant; the 7th covers eastern Bushwick and the rest of western Bushwick; the 2nd covers most of Bedford-Stuyvesant; and the 4th covers a small part of eastern Bedford-Stuyvesant, according to the city Department of City Planning’s municipal court district map.
3rd Municipal Court District, one seat: Tamara Ortiz (Democratic), rated Approved by the City Bar. 7th District, one seat: Bridget Hamblin (Democratic), rated Not Approved. 2nd District, one seat: Lauren J. Brown-Akowe (Democratic), rated Not Approved. 4th District, two seats: Anthony W. Vaughn Jr. (Democratic), Aaron Franklin (Republican, Conservative) and Xavier Carr (Democratic); the City Bar rated Vaughn Approved and Franklin and Carr Not Approved.
Queens, state Supreme Court, 11th Judicial District, three seats: Edwin I. Novillo (Democratic), Gary Muraca (Republican), Oma D. Phillips (Democratic), David A. Bellon (Republican) and Gail A. Adams (Democratic). The City Bar rated Novillo and Phillips Approved and Muraca, Bellon and Adams Not Approved.
Queens, Civil Court, countywide, three seats: Edmond Wong (Democratic), Thomas D. Barra (Republican, Conservative), Julie M. Milner (Democratic, Republican), Jasmine I. Valle-Bueno (Democratic) and Michael Mossa (Republican, Conservative). The City Bar rated Wong and Valle-Bueno Approved and Barra, Milner and Mossa Not Approved.
All of Ridgewood is in Queens’ 3rd Municipal Court District, according to the City Planning map, which elects one Civil Court judge this year: Michelle Ann McSweeney-Ortiz (Democratic) and William David Shanahan (Republican, Conservative), both rated Approved by the City Bar.
Before you go
Election Day poll sites can differ from early voting sites. To find your poll site and see your sample ballot, enter your home address at findmypollsite.vote.nyc or call the Board of Elections at 1-866-VOTE-NYC (1-866-868-3692). Voters assigned in June to the Bushwick and Arlington branch libraries, both closed for renovations, vote today at the Bushwick/Hylan Center and P.S. 108.
Registered voters do not need to show ID to vote unless they did not provide identification with their registration; a voter in that situation can still vote by affidavit ballot. The registration deadline for this election was Oct. 24.
A completed mail ballot can be mailed with a postmark no later than Nov. 3, dropped at the county Board of Elections office by 9 p.m. Nov. 3, or dropped at an Election Day poll site by 9 p.m. Nov. 3. Return envelopes need no postage. A voter who has been issued a mail ballot can no longer vote on a machine at the polls but can still vote in person by affidavit ballot.
The city’s Civic Engagement Commission is stationing interpreters at 100 poll sites on Election Day, none of them in Bushwick, and the Board of Elections provides Spanish interpretation at poll sites in every borough. Voters can also bring someone to help them, as long as it is not their employer or an officer of their union.
The state attorney general’s Election Protection Hotline, (866) 390-2992, is open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Election Day. Complaints can also be filed at electionhotline.ag.ny.gov. Attorney General Letitia James’s office reminded voters on Oct. 27 that military troops and armed federal officers, including ICE, CBP and FBI agents, are not allowed at polling places under state and federal law.
Polls close at 9 p.m., and watch parties in Bushwick, Ridgewood and Bed-Stuy start as early as 7 p.m.
Featured image: Photos: Metropolitan Transportation Authority, CC BY 4.0 (Valdez); NY Senate Photo, CC BY 2.0 (Salazar); New York State Assembly (Davila); Tessa Bury, CC BY 4.0 (Tate). Composite by Bushwick Daily
