Here's what happened in New York's RCV elections
On June 27, New York City held its second ranked choice voting (RCV) primary for members of the City Council. Across 23 Democratic and Republican primary elections, there were 13 contests with three or more candidates. In three of these contests, no candidate won a majority of voters’ first choices, resulting in ranked choice tabulation to identify the candidate with the broadest and deepest support. Our analysis of the unofficial results as of July 11 – which show RCV delivering majority winners and a vast majority of voters taking advantage of their ability to rank – is below.
By all accounts, both voting and the tabulation process have been smooth and easy – with RCV simply becoming part of the fabric of the city’s elections in just its second use.
Preliminary ranked choice results
Council District 9 Democratic primary
In last week’s election, facing a crowded field, Yusef Salaam (a member of the Exonerated Five) received 49.9% of voters’ first choices, just under the majority needed to win outright. His closest challenger, Inez Dickens, received 25%. Al Taylor received 14% and Kristin Jordan (who withdrew after ballots were printed) trailed with 10%.
Notably, RCV gave Jordan’s voters a backup choice; in a single-choice election, their vote would have been effectively “wasted” on a withdrawn candidate.
In the ranked choice voting tabulation, support consolidated behind Yusef Salaam – with 64% of voters preferring him to the runner-up Dickens. In this contest – which received the most media coverage of any City Council primary this cycle and saw a cross-endorsement between Salaam and Taylor – 83% of those supporting lower-performing candidates ranked either Salaam or Dickens on their ballot. 96% of voters expressed their preference between the two strongest candidates.
Ranked choice voting gave voters in Harlem’s District 9 more voice.
Council District 13 Republican Primary
48% of voters ranked Kristy Marmorato as their first choice, with 44% supporting George Havranek and 8% supporting Hasime Zherka. Zherka received the least support, but voters who ranked Zherka or a write-in candidate first still had a chance to impact the final outcome, with their ballots instead counting for their second choice.
In the RCV tabulation, Marmorato won majority support with 51.5% of the vote. With ranked choice voting, over 97% of voters were able to express their preference between Marmorato and Havranek. With majority support consolidated behind her, Marmorato may be a stronger candidate this fall in this competitive district.
Council District 19 Democratic Primary
First-choice support was split among the three candidates in this contest, with Tony Avella leading with 39%. His nearest challenger, Christopher Bae, received 36%, just 175 votes behind Avella. Paul Graziano came in third, with 24%.
In the RCV tabulation, the votes for Graziano and write-in candidates counted for those voters’ second choices, with Avella winning with 51% of the vote.
Ranked choice voting allowed over 93% of voters to express a preference between Avella and Bae; by comparison, only 76% expressed a preference for either of them in the first round.
In a single-choice election, Avella would’ve won with merely a plurality, raising questions about his mandate and also about whether Graziano’s candidacy was simply playing “spoiler.” As in other races, ranked choice voting ensures that the winning candidate has a clear mandate, with a majority of voters behind them.
Overall analysis
Ranked choice voting continues to ensure representative outcomes for New Yorkers, with every primary resulting in a nominee with majority support among voters. It also allows New Yorkers to express their support for their true favorite candidates without fear of splitting the vote or playing “spoiler.”
The above analysis reflects the unofficial results from the NYC Board of Elections released on July 11.
