Queens Gazette

Vote In The Primaries – It Is Important!


Who would rather have less choices? Who would rather have others determine a smaller pool for you to choose from? Like when parents offer their kids their own “choice” between spinach or broccoli! Yay. Or “nay”? It’s a smart strategy for parents to get their kids to eat what’s good for them. But voters are not children, and are capable of choosing what’s good for them, from among ALL the candidates. Voters can decide for themselves the person who they believe has the capability, values and integrity to represent them the best and select them in the primary elections. It is in all citizens’ best interests to exercise their rights and participate in the primary elections.

Just like the special election we had last February, we have Early Voting and Ranked Choice Voting (some info on that below).

Important Dates:

Early Voting Period is June 12-20.

Primary Election Day will be held on June 22.

Last day to apply IN-PERSON for an Absentee Ballot is on June 21.

June 22 is the last day to postmark the ballot. Must be received by the local Board of Elections no later than June 29.

June 22 is also the last day to deliver the ballot IN-PERSON to the local Board of Elections (by someone other than the voter).

For more information, including qualifications for voting by absentee ballot, how to download an application and apply, visit www.elections.ny.gov/VotingAbsentee.html/

To find your Early Voting poll site, visit www.findmypollsite.vote.nyc/ and fill out your address. Remember the Early Voting poll site is different from your Primary Election Day poll site. You will also be given the hours for each day. Some days are as early as 7 AM and some as late as 8 PM. You can also click on the Sample Ballot button to study your ballot.

Be on the lookout for any Meet the Candidates nights still being held by various civic groups, and debates. It might help you in your decision-making. Many of those that were held already are still up on YouTube, Facebook or other media platforms.

This will be the first instance of citywide Ranked Choice Voting (RCV), in which you get to make a few choices, in your order of preference, as the name indicates. If any candidate gets 51% or more on the first count, they have won, since it is impossible for any other candidate to beat them, even with the maximum 49% left (and even less, since there are more than two candidates and it is not very likely anyone would get 0% of the votes).

How RCV works: If your first choice comes in last in the first count of votes (assuming there will be more than one count, again, unless someone gets 51% or more), that choice you listed first will be thrown out and your second choice will be counted in the next round. If your first choice candidate was not last place, your choice stands in the next round of counting. This process repeats until one candidate has garnered the 51% or more. Some people have commented to the effect, “What if people try to game the system?” As in not putting their first choice first, second choice second, etc. A very few people might think this is a smart idea, but we believe most will not cheat themselves this way. Some people may choose to only select one candidate, as they’ve always done. This is a person’s right, just as some people choose not to vote at all.

Less people vote in primaries, so your vote counts for more. Make an informed decision, plan when you want to go, mark your calendar, and vote! Early voting has already started, but it is not over yet.

As you can surmise from all the information we provided, we STRONGLY urge everyone to vote! There is something about everyone joining together to make a decision that we believe helps us make the best choices. We really are all connected, and we do best when we each put our two cents in. There have even been actual studies that showed the outcomes were best when the greatest numbers voted. We really have no explanation for how that works, aside from something verging on the spiritual, but even if one does not buy that, it is hard to argue against voting every chance one gets in a country founded on ideals of democracy.

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