In a city as blue as New York, whoever wins the Democrat primary election is more or less the winner of the general election in November. Though this year’s mayoral race has been particularly contentious, it’s certainly not the only one worth paying attention to. At a local level, the city council member representing Greenpoint’s District 33, Stephen Levin, is term-limited, and eight challengers are vying for his seat. There is also a vacancy for the role of Borough President for Brooklyn due to incumbent Eric Adams being term-limited and running for mayor.
Other Brooklyn specific elections are for Kings County Surrogate Court judge and civil court judges. This year’s primary for the county’s district attorney was canceled, as incumbent Eric Gonzalez is running unopposed. At the city-wide level, public advocate and comptroller are also on the ballot. This year will also mark the debut of ranked choice voting, where voters will get to vote for multiple candidates instead of just one.
Here’s everything you need to know about the who, what, when, and where of voting in District 33 in this year’s primary election.
Voting Basics
When do I vote?
Early voting starts June 12 and lasts until June 20. The hours you can vote will depend on the day. Election day is June 22. Sites will be open from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Currently all New Yorkers are eligible to vote by mail due to COVID 19, but you have to request your absentee ballot by June 15.
Where do I vote?
You can look up your local polling place here. Your early voting polling place is in a different location than the Election Day polling place.
How does ranked choice voting work?
You can read our handy little explanation here.
City-wide Races
What’s going on with the mayoral race this year?
A lot! The most recent debates have been heated, and most of the top candidates have faced a scandal or criticism in one form or another. On the Democrat side, Eric Adams, Art Chang, Shaun Donovan, Aaron Foldenauer, Kathryn Garcia, Raymond McGuire, Dianne Morales, Paperboy Love Prince, Scott Stringer, Joycelyn Taylor, Maya Wiley, Isaac Wright Jr., and Andrew Yang are all competing.
Republican voters will chose between Fernando Mateo and Curtis Sliwa.
Who is running for Public Advocate?
The current public advocate, Jumaane Williams, is running again after winning the seat in a special election in February 2019. The race for this office is not considered particularly competitive this year. The other Democrat running is Theo Chino. Devi Nampiaparampil is running as a Republican, and Anthony Herbert is running as an Independent.
What does a Public Advocate do?
“The Public Advocate is a non-voting member of the New York City Council with the right to introduce and co-sponsor legislation,”according to the official website of the office. They also act as an ombudsperson between various city agencies, and their job is essentially to voice and support citizen concerns that might otherwise be overlooked. If the Mayor steps down or incapcitated and can’t perform their duties, the Public Advocate is next in the line of succession. They serve for a four year term.
Who is running for Comptroller?
Brian Benjamin, Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, Zachary Iscol, Corey Johnson, Brad Lander, Terri Liftin, Alex Pan, Reshma Patel, Kevin Parker, and David Weprin are all running as Democrats.
Daby Carreras is the Republican candidate. Paul Rodriguez is running on the Conservative ticket.
What does a Comptroller do?
A comptroller is the city’s chief financial officer. They manage the city’s money and conduct regular performance and financial audits of all City agencies. Our current comptroller is Scott Stringer who is now running for mayor.
Local Races
Who is running to represent District 33 in city council?
Check out our interviews with all of the candidates – Elizabeth Adams, Victoria Cambranes, Sabrina Gates, Toba Potosky, Stu Sherman, Ben Solotaire, April Somboun, and Lincoln Restler, all running as Democrats.
What does a Borough President do?
Historically, borough presidents had more official responsibilities and decision-making capabilities than in the role’s current form, which is largely ceremonial. However, borough presidents are still the highest ranking official in the borough and have a large platform to highlight local issues and push their agenda forward. Borough presidents can introduce legislation to the city council, though they cannot vote on it. They help determine land use policy, appoint community board members, and all borough presidents share about 5% of the city’s budget to allocate for use on capital projects, like building schools or hospitals.
Who is running for Brooklyn Borough President?
Robert Cornegy, Kimberly Council, Khari Edwards, Robert Elstein, Mathieu Eugene, Pearlene Fields, Anthony T. Jones, Trisha Ocona, Robert Ramos Jr., Antonio Reynoso, Jo Anne Simon, Lamor Whitehead-Miller are all running as Democrats.
Menachem Raitport is running alone on the Republican and Conservative ticket, so the Republican primary for this election has been canceled.
What’s up with these judicial elections?
The elections are for two distinct types of courts. One is for a judgeship on the King’s County Surrogate’s Court. “The Surrogate’s Court hears cases involving the affairs of decedents, including the probate of wills and the administration of estates,” according to the NY Courts website. Current State Supreme Court Justice Rosemarie Montalbano and Civil Court Judge Dweynie Paul are competing for this seat.
There are also currently five vacancies on various city civil courts. Three of those seats are county wide, and two are in specific districts, neither of which Greenpoint is a part of. Judges on these courts are elected for a ten year term. City civil courts adjudicate cases where parties are seeking monetary relief up to $25,000. Heela Capell, Sharen Hudson, Inga O’Neale, Casilda Elena Roper-Simpson are running for the seat. Brklyner reports that “Campaign finance records show that accounts were opened by Phillip F. Grant and Charles Finkelstein for Civil Court, but neither appear to be actively campaigning.”
Whoever wins for Mayor, two yrs from now, half of the the winner’s voters will say he or she was the worst mayor we every had just like they did with Deblassio, Bloomberg, Rudy G, Dinkins etc.
New Yorkers love to put somebody on a pedestal and then tear them down.