BY ALLISON DUBROW
People lined up on Halloween at Brooklyn College in Midwood to vote early. With Election Day around the corner, many want to make sure that their voice is heard. But at a time when there is already low voter turnout even for presidential, gubernatorial, or mayoral races, election officials expect light turnout in a year when none of those offices are up for grabs.
Early voting in New York began last Saturday, Oct. 28. This year all 51 City Council seats are on the ballot, as well as Civil Court judgeships, ballot proposals, and district attorney offices in the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island.
“I don’t like the line,” said Hugh Kura, a Brooklyn resident who likes to vote early rather than on Election Day.
Workers at the Brooklyn College polling site said that this year there are fewer people voting early so far compared with the number that showed up in 2020, when the line zigzagged for blocks.
In NYC, for the November 2022 General Election, there were 4,723,497 eligible voters, yet only 1,809,732 people actually voted, which is about 38.3% of eligible voters, according to a report done by the New York City Campaign Finance Board.
This election, New Yorkers will be voting for members of the City Council which has a Democratic majority. Local elections can have a big impact because the council sets the city’s laws.
One race New Yorkers will be paying close attention to is the City Council election in District 47, where Democrat Justin Brannan and Republican Ari Kagan are going head to head. Last year district lines were redrawn and both politicians got placed in the same district for this election, whereas they were in adjoining districts before the change. Kagan switched parties from being a Democrat to a Republican.
Back at Brooklyn College, the campus New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) set up a table to try to get more students to register to vote. NYPIRG is a statewide student-directed, non-partisan, nonprofit, research and public education organization.
“It is important to have a say in who your elected officials are,” said Evie Barth, a student at Brooklyn College.
Early voting sites are open every day until Sunday, Nov. 5, and Election Day is on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Check vote.nyc to see where your early voting site is as it may be different from Election Day sites.
On Election Day, polls are open from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m.