Frequently Asked Questions

It’s the election before the election. In primary elections, you decide which candidate will be your party’s nominee for the general election. You must be a member of a political party to vote in a primary.

Learn more about types of elections

General elections are the championship match, where candidates from different parties compete to win elected office. Winners of primary elections represent their party in the general election. General elections sometimes include ballot proposals, where voters choose whether to adopt new laws or policies.

Learn more about types of elections

Special elections are held when an elected official leaves office before the end of their term. The winner serves in office until the end of that term.

Learn more about types of elections

To learn more about the candidates on your ballot, you can get information in our online voter guide. Before the election, you can enter in your address in our 'Meet the Candidates' section to find which offices will be on your ballot and a list of candidates running for each office. You can also find profiles submitted by candidates, including videos and more.

In primary and special elections for local offices, you can rank up to 5 candidates in order of preference instead of choosing just one.

Learn more about Ranked Choice Voting

You can rank up to five candidates in order of preference, instead of choosing just one. If a candidate receives more than 50% of 1st-choice votes, they are the winner. If no candidate earns more than 50% of 1st-choice votes, then counting will continue in rounds. At the end of each round, the candidate with the fewest votes will be eliminated. If you ranked that candidate 1st, your vote will go to the next highest ranked candidate on your ballot. This process will continue until there are two candidates left. The candidate with the most votes wins.

Learn more about Ranked Choice Voting

Yes! You can still vote for just your 1st- choice candidate. However, ranking other candidates does not harm your 1st choice. If your 1st and only choice is eliminated, your vote will have no influence on the outcome of the election. (You may hear folks call this an “exhausted ballot.”)

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

No. You can rank up to five candidates, but you do not need to rank a total of 5.

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

No. If you rank your preferred candidate more than once (for example as your 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th choice), then only your first ranking will count. There is no strategic benefit to giving the same candidate multiple rankings. It doesn’t help them, and it takes away your chance to have a say about who you’d choose next out of the remaining candidates (This is another way your ballot can get “exhausted”).

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

No. You can only choose one candidate for each ranking. If you choose more than one candidate as your 1st choice, your ballot will not be valid.

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

To vote for a candidate whose name is not on the ballot, write their name on the “Write-in” line and fill in an oval to rank your write-in choice.

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

No. Your vote only counts for the highest active candidate on your ballot. Your vote will only count for your 2nd choice if your 1st choice is eliminated, and so on.

Learn how votes are counted with Ranked Choice Voting

If you vote in person, the voting machine will let you know if you give multiple candidates the same ranking. If you make a mistake, you can ask a poll worker for a new ballot. However, the voting machine will not let you know if you skip rankings or rank the same candidate multiple times, since your top-choice vote will still count in those cases.

Learn how to fill out your Ranked Choice ballot

Final results in Ranked Choice elections will not be known until all absentee and military ballots are counted, which could take several weeks after Election Day.

Learn how votes are counted with Ranked Choice Voting

The NYC Board of Elections will share unofficial election results after polls close on Election Day. However, these results will not include any absentee ballot votes. After they receive all absentee ballots, they will finish counting and release certified final results. You can find election results at the NYC Board of Elections website.

Visit the Board of Elections website

If you requested an absentee ballot, then you should plan to vote with it. You can drop off your completed absentee ballot at any voting site while polls are open. However, if you choose to vote in person after requesting an absentee ballot, you will have to vote with an affidavit ballot at your poll site. This ballot will look different. Ask a poll worker for help if you need it.

Yes! You can drop off your completed absentee ballot at any NYC poll site. Ballot boxes will be available at the front desk. You can also drop off your ballot at any Board of Elections office. You do not need postage if you are dropping off your ballot.

Learn more about voting by mail

Yes! The Board of Elections’ ballot tracker will let you know the status of your ballot after you submit a request. It will also let you know if they have received your completed ballot and whether it’s valid.

Track your ballot

The Board of Elections is required by law to notify you if there is a curable error on your ballot envelope, such as a missing or incorrect signature. If there is a fixable error on your ballot, they will contact you by mail, email, and phone (if available) within 1 day of discovering the error. You will then have a minimum of 5 days to correct the error by returning a signed affirmation.

Learn more about voting by mail

Sounds strange, but it’s true! You can vote absentee in person at your borough’s Board of Elections office. Offices are open 9am-5pm Monday through Friday, and on the weekend prior to Election Day. This can be a helpful option if you miss the deadline to request a ballot online or by mail. On Election Day offices are open until 9pm.

Find your local Board of Elections office

Yes! If you are permanently ill or disabled and cannot get to your poll site, you can join the Board of Elections permanent absentee ballot list. To join, check the box marked “permanent illness or physical disability” on the absentee ballot application. The Board of Elections will automatically send you an absentee ballot application for every election you are qualified to vote in. 

Request absentee ballot

Download absentee ballot request form

The Board of Elections can receive ballots up to seven days after Election Day. However, you must postmark by Election Day for your ballot to be valid.

Learn more about voting by mail

Yes! You can vote early 10 days prior to the election day, though hours vary each day. Just like on Election Day, you can visit your early voting site any time polls are open.

Find your poll site

You must vote at your assigned poll site on Election Day.

Find your poll site

Polls are open from 6am-9pm on Election Day.

Find your poll site

Yes! If you vote in person after requesting or submitting an absentee ballot, your absentee ballot is automatically disqualified. Only your in person vote will count. You do not need to bring your absentee ballot to your poll site.

Learn more about Election Day

Yes! You have the right to vote as long as you are a registered voter in line by 9pm on Election Day.

Learn more about Election Day

Maybe, but don’t be surprised if we have to wait a few weeks. The Board of Elections can receive absentee ballots until seven days after Election Day, so the results of some races may not be known until all ballots have been received.

You are eligible to register to vote if you are:

• a U.S. citizen
• a New York City resident for at least 30 days
• at least 16 years old (you can pre-register to vote at 16 or 17, but you must be 18 to vote)

Learn more about registering to vote

If you have a New York State ID, you can register online with the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Register to vote online

If you do not have a New York State ID, you can complete a voter registration form and mail it to the Board of Elections. You can also visit your Borough Board of Elections office to register in person.

Download a voter registration form

If you don’t have a New York State ID or a printer, you can digitally fill out a form with TurboVote and have them print and mail it to you, so you can sign and return to the Board of Elections. The platform also works on mobile, so you don’t even need a computer.

Register to vote with TurboVote

You can check your voter registration status, which political party you are enrolled in, and your political district information by using the NYS Voter Lookup tool.

Check your registration

Yes! When you move, you should change your address with the Board of Elections by submitting a new voter registration form. Complete the section labeled “Voting information that has changed” by entering your old address. If you would like to become a member of a political party, or remain a member of your current political party, make sure to select your political party on your registration.

Learn more about registering to vote

No. You do not have to join a political party when you register to vote. However, only members of political parties are eligible to vote in primary elections. So if you’d like to vote in primary elections for a particular party, you should join that party when you register.

Learn more about primary elections

Yes! To update your party affiliation, you must submit a new voter registration form. On your form, make sure to select the political party that you would like to join.

Learn more about registering to vote

If you are currently on probation or parole, you have the right to vote.

• You will likely need to submit a new voter registration form, even if you were previously registered. Register to vote.
• If you were previously registered, you can check your voter registration here.

At your poll site you have the right to:

• Ask a poll worker for help
• Use an interpreter if you need language assistance
• Bring any voting materials with you 
• Vote even if the voting machine is broken
• Vote by affidavit ballot if your name is missing from the list of voters at your polling site
• Not show an ID if you are not a first time voter

Learn more about your voting rights

Yes! You have the right to take two paid hours off from work at the beginning or end of your shift if polls are open for less than 4 hours before your shift starts and after it ends. That means on Election Day, you can take paid time off if you are scheduled to start work before 10am and end work after 5pm. You must notify your employer at least two days before you plan to vote.

Learn more about your voting rights

You can call the NYC Board of Elections about any issues at your poll site. Call 1-866-Vote-NYC (866-868-3692) or TDD/TTY Call the New York State Relay 711.

You can contact the Election Protection hotline to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer and get free legal support. Call 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).

If you are currently on probation or parole, you have the right to vote.

• You will likely need to submit a new voter registration form, even if you were previously registered. Register to vote.
• If you were previously registered, you can check your voter registration here.

Yes! If you are experiencing homelessness, you can register and vote in New York City. You must include a mailing address where the BOE can send you notices on your registration form.

Ballot Marking Devices are available at all poll sites to help voters fill out their ballots during early voting and on Election Day. These devices can be helpful to voters who are blind, visually impaired, or have a disability or condition that make it difficult or impossible to mark a ballot with a pen. However, any voter can request to use a Ballot Marking Device.

You can use a Ballot Marking Device to see your ballot on a display screen, listen to your choices through headphones, or translate your ballot into additional languages. If you’d like to use a Ballot Marking Device, just ask a poll worker! 

The device provides four ways to mark your ballot:

• Touch screen
• Sip & puff device
• Keypad (Braille)
• Rocker paddle

Learn more about Ballot Marking Devices from the Board of Elections

Yes! As long as they are not your employer or union representative, you can bring someone to help you vote. You can also always ask a poll worker for help.

Learn more about accessibility.

Yes! If you are visually impaired or have a disability that requires you to use an accessible version of the absentee ballot that can be read by a screen reader and marked digitally, you may request an accessible ballot from the NYC Board of Elections.

Request an accessible ballot

Yes! The NYC Board of Elections ensures that every poll site in the city is accessible to all voters during early voting and Election Day. If there are any issues with your poll site, you can contact the Board of Elections at 1-866-Vote-NYC (866-868-3692) or TDD/TTY Call the New York State Relay 711.

Yes, as long as they are not also your employer or union representative. Some poll sites have materials in Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and Bengali. The languages available at your poll site are based on local Census data.

In addition, interpreters are available at some poll sites to provide assistance in these languages and others, such as Arabic, Haitian Creole, Russian, and Yiddish. You can learn which poll sites offer translators in each language at the Civic Engagement Commission’s website.

Learn more about your rights as a voter

It depends on where you live. By law, New York City ballots and other voting materials are translated into Bengali, Chinese, Korean, and Spanish at certain poll sites based on local Census data.

Learn more about voting in your language.

Contribute will not store your financial information. However, the Contribute payment processor, Stripe, may store credit card transaction information. Refer to the Contribute Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions for more details.

No, contributions to political campaigns are not tax deductible.

You don't need to create a Contribute account to contribute to campaigns. Create an account only if you would like to save your information for future contributions. To create an account, go to the For Contributors at contribute.nycvotes.org/signup.

If you are a New York City resident, the CFB may match your contribution at a rate of $8-to-$1. That means a $10 contribution to a participating candidate could be worth $90 to their campaign. The campaign must report your contribution correctly and claim it for matching funds.

When you donate on Contribute, your contribution goes directly to the campaign’s bank account via the site’s credit card processor, Stripe. Stripe charges the campaign a standard processing fee (2.9% + $0.30) for each contribution.

To follow the Campaign Finance Board Rules, campaigns must report complete contribution details. The following information is disclosed in the Campaign Finance Board’s Follow the Money Database:

• The contributor’s full name.
• The city, state and zip code of the contributor’s residential address.
• The contributor’s occupation and employer.
• The amount, date, and form (cash, check, credit card, etc.) of the contribution.

Reach out to the campaign to correct your information. You can find campaign contact information on the Campaign Finance Board website. If you are unable to contact the campaign, email contribute@nyccfb.info.

Reach out to the campaign to request a refund. You can find campaign contact information on the Campaign Finance Board website. If you are unable to contact the campaign, email contribute@nyccfb.info.

Contribute is currently available in English and Spanish. More languages are coming soon! 

¡Contribuya en español aquí!

If you have created a contributor account, you can select Spanish as your preferred language for future contributions. 

No. Contribute does not allow for recurring contributions. This keeps campaigns from going over the contribution limit. 

The CFB does not charge campaigns to use Contribute. Stripe, the credit card processor Contribute uses to direct funds to your bank account, charges a standard fee (2.9% + $0.30) for each contribution. Stripe deducts the fee from each contribution before it deposits the funds into your committee bank account.

No, you can log in using your existing credentials. After logging in, you will need to connect to a new Stripe account – do not reuse an existing Stripe account. When creating a Stripe account, use an email address the candidate, treasurer, and anyone else using your Contribute account can access. Stripe may send time-sensitive messages to this email address.

1.    Visit contribute.nycvotes.org/signup to sign up
You will be able to create an account 24 to 48 business hours after the CFB accepts your registration. 

 2.    Create your account
Create an account from the For Campaigns tab. You must use the email address on your CFB registration. Only candidates and treasurers can have Contribute accounts.

Best practice: The candidate and treasurer should each create their own Contribute accounts to receive important communications. 

3.    Agree to the affirmation statement
Review the affirmation statement and click I Agree.

4.    Activate your account and connect with Stripe
You will then receive an account activation email. After activating your account, connect it to Stripe. Candidates who have run in the past must create a new Stripe account for each election.

After logging back into your Contribute account, click the Connect with Stripe button.

You will be directed to a registration form to create a Stripe account. Your Stripe account is separate from your Contribute account. The Stripe account will process contributions and send them to your bank account. Some of the information you will need to enter in the registration form includes:

Business Information

• Business Type: Select "Nonprofit Organization"
• Business Details: Enter your committee’s information in this section. 
  
  • Legal business name: Enter the committee’s name (as disclosed to the IRS and CFB)
  • Employer Identification Number (EIN): Enter the number provided by the IRS
  • Business address: Enter the committee's address
  • Business phone number: Enter the committee's phone number
  • Business website: If you don't have a campaign website, use contribute.nycvotes.org
  • Product description: "I am collecting contributions to support my candidacy for public office in New York City."

Account Representative 

• Legal name: The candidate (recommended), treasurer, or another campaign representative with significant managerial control should create the Stripe account. The Stripe account representative will need to provide personal identifying information (for example, date of birth, home address and the last four digits of Social Security Number.)
• Email address: Enter an email address that the account representative checks frequently.

Bank Details

• Add an account: Enter your committee bank account number and routing number to set up transfers from Stripe. You must use the same bank account on file with the CFB.
• Payout schedule: Select "Automatic every day."

Public Details and Fraud Protection

• Statement descriptor: This is the "business name" that will appear on your contributors' bank statement. Use the committee's name to avoid disputes over unrecognized transactions.
• Customer support phone number: Enter a phone number contributors can use to reach you.
• Customer support address: Enter the committee's address.
• Fraud protection: For the free fraud protection option, select the "Lite" tier. If you are interested in one of Stripe's paid fraud protection options, contact your Candidate Services liaison.

Review the information you've provided and click Agree and submit.

5.    Receive Contribute link and start collecting contributions
After creating your Stripe account, you will receive an email with the link to your Contribute page. You can now start accepting contributions! Share the link in promotional materials, campaign flyers and mailings, and social media posts.

Best practice: Have the candidate or treasurer make a small test contribution (which may be matchable) and upload it to C-SMART.

Transfers occur daily and consist of contributions received two business days prior. Your first transfer may take up to one week to process. 

You can check your payout schedule in your Stripe Dashboard.

You must upload all contributions received through Contribute to C-SMART. If you don't upload your contributions, you can't claim them for matching funds or submit them to the CFB.

IMPORTANT: Do not manually enter contributions received via Contribute into C-SMART. If you notice that a contribution is not uploading into C-SMART, contact your Candidate Services liaison.

1.    Sign in to your Contribute account
From contribute.nycvotes.org/login, enter your CFB-registered email address and Contribute password.

2.    Enter your C-SMART encryption key
When you log in, you will be directed to the Data section of your account page. If there are contributions you have not uploaded to C-SMART, you will see a red "Action Required" box under the Data tab. Enter your C-SMART encryption key in the Encryption Key field and click Upload.

1.    Review each contribution in C-SMART
Review the Contribute Upload Report in C-SMART to ensure that the uploaded contribution data is accurate. For more information on how to access and use this report, review Reports in C-SMART Help. Compare the data on the C-SMART report to the data in the Contribute Activity Report, which you can request from your Contribute account. In C-SMART, you can review the backup documentation for each contribution uploaded from Contribute. 

2.    Merge duplicate name records
When someone who contributes through Contribute already has a name record in C-SMART, the upload will create a new name record for them. After every upload, merge any duplicate name records. For instructions, see Merge Duplicate Names in C-SMART Help.

3.    Check for over-the-limit-contributions
Review your contributions for any over-the-limit contributions. The easiest way is to run the Contributions Over the Limit report in C-SMART. It lists all contributions from any contributor whose total is over the contribution limit.

4.    Claim eligible contributions for matching funds
C-SMART does not claim contributions for match on its own. After each upload, enter a matching amount for eligible contributions. To see how to edit contributions to claim them for matching funds, review Monetary Contributions in C-SMART Help.

Use the C-SMART Contribute Upload Report in C-SMART to find contributions to claim for match. The report lists each contribution’s C-SMART transaction ID and the matching amount. 

Like contributions, you can upload monthly Stripe processing fees to C-SMART from the Data tab of your Contribute account. Stripe fees are available to upload on the 10th day of each month, and they cover activity for the preceding month. The fees are also in the monthly account statements you receive via email.

To upload Stripe fees, enter your C-SMART encryption key in the Encryption Key field and click Upload.

Note: If there were no contributions received for a given month, there will be no Stripe fees available to upload for that month.

The first time you upload Stripe fees, C-SMART will create a new name record for Stripe. The amount of fees deducted for the month will be reported as a bill and bill payment transactions in C-SMART. In C-SMART, you can search for “Stripe – NYC Votes Contribute” to review your newly-uploaded Stripe fees.

You can create Contribute pages for fundraisers, which are events organized and sponsored by your campaign. Contribute helps you collect contributions for those fundraisers and simplify the reporting of most of the required details: the event's name, location, date, and contributions received.

1.    View events and create a new event
From the My Campaigns page, click the Fundraising Events tab to create, view, and manage upcoming and past events. For Contribute accounts with multiple campaign committees, be sure you select the correct campaign from the "My Campaigns" drop-down at the top of the page.

2.    Enter event details
Select "Create New Event" and enter all the event details. Fields are marked with an asterisk (*) are required. 

3.    Share event page with supporters
After creating an event, you will be directed to the Tools tab on the event’s administrative page. From here, you will find links to the event page, social media tools, and HTML code for embedding the event page in your campaign communications. The Status of the event will now be Open, meaning you can start collecting contributions for the event.

IMPORTANT: After an event has occurred, mark it as closed so you don't receive more contributions through the event page. From the Edit tab in the event’s administrative page, select Close Event. 

1.    Edit event
Go to the Edit tab from the event's administrative page.

To update event details and close, open, or delete an event. You can only delete an event if you have not received contributions through the event page. This action cannot be undone. 

You will receive an email confirming any changes you make to your event. If you upload an event to C-SMART, then make changes to the event in Contribute, be sure to edit the details in C-SMART. 

If you close an event and need to re-open it, contact your Candidate Services liaison. 

You can customize the contribution amounts for your event page from the Tools tab on the event’s administrative page. Update the amounts under Custom Amount Tool. Make sure to click Save New Defaults when you’re finished. To show fewer than five contribution amounts, enter $0 in any of the contribution amount fields. Amounts of $0 will not appear on your fundraising event page.

2.    Manage and view fundraising events
Return to the Fundraising Events tab to view your events. Events can be sorted by Event Date and Time, Event Name, Status, and Total Contributions by clicking on each header.

Click Preview to view the event page that will be shared with contributors. To return to the event’s administrative page, click the hyperlinked event name.

3.    Review contributions received at a fundraising event
You can see event contributions from the Contributions tab on the event’s administrative page. From this page, you can also export the list of contributions received through this event page as a CSV file.

Upload contributions to C-SMART and enter matching claims as you receive them.

From the Data tab of your account page, click Email Contribute Activity Report. You will receive an email with a spreadsheet containing your Contribute financial activity to date.

You can issue refunds via Stripe, certified or bank check, or ACH transfer. If you have received public funds, check with your liaison before refunding contributions.

When refunding a prohibited contribution via Stripe, remember that for the refund to be considered resolved, it cannot be pending and must have cleared your campaign bank account. 

1. From My Campaigns page, click the Tools tab.
2. Click the Contribution List button.
3. Here you will see a list of all contributions received via Contribute. You can search for and sort contributions by date received, amount, contributor name, and contributor email. For contributions that you uploaded to C-SMART, you can also search by transaction ID.
4. Click View Contribution in Stripe to the right of the contribution to go to the contribution payment details in Stripe.
5. In the top right corner, click the Refund button with the black arrow symbol.
6. Enter the amount you are refunding. The default is a full refund. For a partial refund, enter a different amount. 
7. Select a reason for the refund. If you select Other, you must provide an explanatory note. The reason you enter is for your campaign and Stripe's records only.
8. Click Refund.

To document the refund in C-SMART, once it has cleared your bank account:

1. While in Stripe, under “Payments - Refunded”, search for your contributor by first name, last name.
2. Identify the specific contribution that you refunded. Click on that contribution to open the refund details.
3. Save the entire refund details screen as a PDF by clicking “CTRL+P” and then instead of printing, select “Save as PDF.
4. In C-SMART, add the monetary contribution refund. You can enter “Stripe” as the Check Number.

Upload the entire PDF with Stripe refund details as refund documentation in C-SMART. For instructions, see Monetary Contribution Refund Documentation in C-SMART Help.

In the Tools tab of your account page, you can set the contribution amounts that appear on your contribution page. To set custom contribution amounts for fundraising events, navigate to the Fundraising Events tab. Change event contribution amounts on the Tools tab of each event's administrative page.

You will also find the HTML code to embed your contribution page on your website, in your campaign emails, and on your social media pages. 

Yes. If you use the same email address to register all your committees with the CFB you can access them from the same Contribute account.Candidates and treasurers working on more than one campaign can manage all their committee accounts with one login.

If you're doing post-election fundraising, your name will not appear on the contribute.nycvotes.org list. You can still find your contribution page link under the Tools tab of your Contribute account.

Any post-election fundraising or spending must be reported with the corresponding disclosure deadline. If you are using Contribute for more than one campaign, remember to do uploads from the Data tab for each campaign. 

Your supporters can access Contribute in English and Spanish, and more languages are coming soon! The campaign-facing dashboards are currently only available in English.

Email contribute@nyccfb.info if you need help translating contribution details. 

To switch between languages, click the globe icon in the top right corner of your contribution page. You can copy the Spanish language URL, beginning with "es", and share it with your Spanish-speaking supporters. 

Yes, you may accept contributions from U.S. citizens or permanent residents, even if they live outside of the United States. Only contributions from individual New York City residents can be matched with public funds.

It is the campaign's responsibility to accurately report required information to the CFB. However, Contribute helps by:

• Collecting the contributor information the CFB requires for compliance and disclosure,
• Asking contributors for their "doing business" status, and 
• Presenting contribution affirmations required by law.