If You Live in New York, You Probably Have a Primary Next Tuesday.

Yes, 2019 has elections. And if you live in New York City, your primaries are next Tuesday, June 25. General elections will be held November 5  — yes, that’s this November 5, 2019. If you’re like a lot of New Yorkers, you probably didn’t realize that. Since the city does not go out of its way to inform us busy voters of when our elections are, few but the wonkiest Gothamites know that 2019 is an “off-cycle” year that has plenty of key races up for grabs.

New York City is one of the few major U.S. cities that still has “off-cycle” elections in odd-numbered years.

The lack of outreach from the city is just one of the reasons New York’s voter turnout numbers are some of the lowest in the nation. But showing up at the polls in these off-year elections is one way to show the rest of the country that we care about who’s making the decisions for our city, from our housing court judges to our City Council members to our district attorneys in charge of the welfare of, literally, millions of people. And in the 2019 general election, New Yorkers will have an opportunity to vote on fundamental changes to the city charter.

Wait. I voted last year. Why am I voting again in 2019?

It’s because New York City has “off-cycle” elections, meaning our municipal races are required to take place during odd-numbered years, a practice that dates back to a state law passed in 1894. During even-numbered years, we hold elections for president, Congress, governor and statewide legislators. In the in-between years, we go to the polls to elect the mayor, City Council members, public advocate, and lots and lots of judges.

Off-cycle years also see plenty of special elections, which are usually called when a public official leaves their post early. That’s the case in many of the races taking place this year, including the race for Queens district attorney and a key City Council seat in Brooklyn.

So, yes, it’s a lot of elections, but skipping them means “they” win — “they” being long-term incumbents who count on voter apathy to keep their seats safe.

So… what am I voting for on June 25?

It depends on where you live in NYC. The easiest way to look up who’s on your June 25 primary ballot is to enter your address into Ballotpedia’s online sample ballot tool. You can do the same with the Board of Elections’ poll site locator tool, which will also tell you where your polling place is and whether or not you’re registered at your current address. Keep in mind that New York has closed primaries, which means you must be a registered member of a party to vote in that party’s primary. Note: The registration cutoff for these primaries was May 31.

Virtually all of the primaries taking place next week are Democratic ones — and with a predominantly blue voting population, New York's elections are often decided in the primaries.

The races you can vote in will vary greatly depending on your borough and council district. If you live in Queens, your borough has a hotly contested primary race for district attorney on June 25. Seven Democrats are vying to take over this powerful chief prosecutor role following the May death of 28-year-veteran DA Richard Brown. And with criminal justice reform a growing national concern, the race for Queens DA could have a long-lasting impact on the borough, the city and beyond.

Brooklynites, you’ve got lots of county judgeships to vote for in next week’s primary, ranging from Supreme Court delegates to Surrogate Court and Civil Court judges. These races may seem inconsequential, but the candidates who win these seats may decide how valuable estates are disbursed, who gets child custody and how civil lawsuits are settled. They are elected to 10-year terms in the case of Civil Court, and 14-year terms in the case of Surrogate’s and Supreme Court judges. Sometimes info on judge candidates can be slight, but you can start by Googling their public records and local interviews, and see who best speaks to your values. Gotham Gazette puts out quality judicial race reporting, as does The Brooklyn Eagle — though their explainers on the opaque selection process remind us that New York’s political machine needs reform at every level.

Brooklyn also has a special City Council primary in District 45 to fill Jumaane Williams’s council seat, which he left open to take over as the city’s public advocate in February. His temporary replacement, Farah Louis, is facing a primary against four Democratic challengers. Again, this is a consequential election not just for the residents of this south Brooklyn district, but for the city as a whole. City Council members have the ability to propose and vote on important bills impacting all boroughs.

Manhattan and Staten Island are also holding several primaries for Civil Court judgeships, Supreme Court delegates and County Committee members on June 25. The Bronx does not have any primaries this year.

And there’s an election in November 2019 too?

There sure is. November 5 is when all five boroughs will hold their 2019 general elections. This includes a race for Bronx district attorney, as well as New York City public advocate (who’s second-in-line to the mayor) and all other contested seats mentioned above.

A referendum this November on revisions to the New York City charter could give the city greater power to discipline members of the New York Police Department.

Perhaps the most important item all New Yorkers will find on their ballot this November is a referendum on changes to the city charter. In July, the New York City Charter Revision Commission will announce its final proposed changes to the city’s governing charter, a document that has not been overhauled in 30 years. Expect to answer yes or no questions on issues including the introduction of Ranked Choice Voting, the expansion of measures to hold the NYPD accountable, and greater community input into the city’s land use decisions.

If you haven’t registered to vote yet, make sure you do so by October 11 of this year to be eligible to vote in the November 2019 general election and in the June 2020 primary. After October 11, New York voters are blocked from changing their party enrollment for the 2020 primary, so best to get a jump on it.

How come I didn’t know there were elections happening next week??

Good question. One answer is the city does not advertise its elections. The city and its state-controlled Board of Elections need to do far more outreach to encourage awareness of our election system and increase access to the polls. Currently, there are no public service ads in the subways or buses, and no signs on the parks or sidewalks. Why not? It’s been difficult getting an answer on this from city officials. Some think the city’s mailed Voter Guide booklet is enough to stoke participation — even though it rarely gets mailed in a timely manner and does not reach all voters. When it does, it is often incomplete. (A quick look at the online version of the Voter Guide reveals that this is still the case.) Also, voter fatigue is a real thing here. The fact that New York City has elections every year is one of the myriad reasons it has some of the lowest voter turnout numbers in the nation, and some advocates have called for a return to “on-cycle” municipal elections for the city to boost turnout. But frequency is not the only culprit. Many eligible New York voters stay home because they have no idea there is even an election in the first place — and often when they do find out, it’s too late. Hard to blame them when most New Yorkers are scrambling to pay their exorbitant rents and hustling to compete in the job market.

When we do turn up to the polls in healthy droves, like we did in 2018, it causes such a shock to our poorly managed polling sites — machines breaking down, lines around the block, gross misinformation barked at voters by poll workers — that many voters just say, “Ah, forget it,” and go home. Then they stay home for the next election. One thing lawmakers hope will help this problem is the state’s new early voting law, which will be implemented for NYC’s 2019 general election. It requires the installation of additional polling sites that will be open during the nine days leading up to November 5. However, there are grave doubts from many city officials and activists about the Board of Elections' ability to competently roll out this program.

Meanwhile, let’s not let the city’s fondness for a chaotic and opaque election system make us play into the “New York values” trope — that we’re too busy queuing up for matcha lattes and drinking on rooftop bars to participate in our flawed but vital democracy.