For the last century, New York City has elected its mayor the same way. Voters have chosen candidates in party primaries, and the winners have faced off in a general election.
That may soon change.
A special panel appointed by Mayor Eric Adams is formulating a plan that would scrap the current system in favor of an open primary where all the candidates — regardless of political party affiliation — would be on the ballot.
Under the proposal, the top two candidates would advance to the general election, regardless of their party affiliation. And all voters would be eligible to participate in the primary election. Right now, only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote in their party’s primary contest.
The 13-member panel, a charter revision commission, recently released a 135-page report that details several proposals that could be on the ballot this November. The measures could curb the City Council’s power to reject new housing, among other ideas. Voters would need to approve the proposals, which would be listed as ballot questions, for them to be enacted.
The commission has not yet decided whether to put open primaries on the ballot, and during a four-hour hearing on Monday, public opinions were clearly divided.
Here’s what you need to know about the proposal:
How would an open primary system work?
The panel is considering moving to a system where all registered voters could participate in local primary elections, and the top two candidates who receive the most votes would face off in the general election.
This system is known as a “jungle primary” and is used in California.
If the system had been used in the 2021 New York City mayor’s race, the general election in November would have featured the top two vote-getters from the June primary: Eric Adams and Kathryn Garcia, both Democrats.
Mr. Adams, who was elected mayor, and Ms. Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner who finished second in the Democratic primary, received the most total primary votes. But under the existing system, Mr. Adams ran in November 2021 against Curtis Sliwa, who won the Republican primary.
The open primary system would continue to use ranked-choice voting, a system that was used for the first time during the 2021 and 2025 mayoral primaries. It allows voters to rank up to five candidates in order of preference. It is not used in general elections.
Under the charter commission’s proposal, every local elected office would have an open primary: mayor, public advocate, borough presidents, comptroller and City Council members.
Who supports the idea?
Some civic groups and allies of Mayor Adams back the idea and argue that it would increase participation in municipal elections.
There are more than one million unaffiliated voters in the city who are not registered with a party and who are excluded from primaries, the commission found. About 65 percent of voters are registered Democrats; nearly 11 percent are registered Republicans; and more than 21 percent are unaffiliated.
A majority of unaffiliated voters are Black, Latino or Asian, and the plan’s supporters say the change would give them more of a voice.
“Hundreds of thousands of working people cannot vote in our most consequential elections because they choose to register as independent,” said Vincent Albanese, executive director of the New York State Laborers’ Political Action Fund.
Some groups like the idea of open primaries, but argue that it is not the right time to implement them when New York City voters are still learning how to use ranked-choice voting.
Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause, asked the commission not to place the issue on the ballot in November.
“We think that the community needs more time to examine various forms of open primaries and make the determination if that’s a change that would be broadly supported,” Ms. Lerner added.
The commission said that there were many benefits to an open primary.
“This change would be intended to give over one million unaffiliated voters a more effective voice in city government, boost turnout in local elections, make the city’s voting population more representative and increase electoral competition,” the commission said in its report.
Who opposes the idea?
A diverse range of people oppose the plan, including progressive leaders and Republicans.
Brad Lander, the city comptroller, said at Monday’s hearing that open primaries would harm political parties and seek to “overturn an election we just had” — a reference to the Democratic primary in June, in which he placed third and cross-endorsed Zohran Mamdani, the winner.
“It will be ripe for spending at unlimited levels and it will not produce better government,” he said.
Jasmine Gripper, a director of the left-leaning Working Families Party, threatened to sue to stop the measure. She said that it would “stack the deck in favor of moneyed interests” because candidates would need the resources to reach out to Democratic, Republican and independent voters.
The plan was “not about increasing turnout — it’s about limiting the power of working people, confusing voters and making it easier for billionaires to handpick their candidates,” she said.
Republicans have also criticized the idea, arguing it would hurt their candidates. Joann Ariola, a Republican City Council member from Queens, said it would “effectively usher in one-party rule.”
What other cities and states use open primaries?
Many major American cities, including Los Angeles and Chicago, have some form of open or nonpartisan primaries, and there are several different models.
In Texas and Virginia, primaries are open and a voter does not have to be a registered member of a party to vote in a primary. The winner of each party’s primary moves on to the general election in November.
In Massachusetts, registered Democrats and Republicans can only vote in their party’s primary; unaffiliated voters can vote in either primary.
In Illinois, voters do not register with a party in advance and can decide which primary to vote in on Election Day.
The “jungle primary” model used in California is closest to what the charter commission is proposing. The state has used the system since 2011, and candidates list their “party preference” next to their name on the ballot.
New York City’s charter commission said that New York is one of only 10 states that uses a closed primary system, where only registered voters for a certain party can vote in primaries.
Why does New York keep changing the rules for elections?
The city introduced ranked-choice voting for local primary elections in 2021, and voters appear to be getting more accustomed to the system. Even so, the charter commission is considering asking voters in November to consider more change.
If a majority of voters support the open primaries plan, it would take effect for local elections in 2029.
Another potential ballot measure could ask voters whether the city should move local elections to even years, to line up with presidential elections. If it is approved by a majority of voters, it would still require a change to the State Constitution.
The commission is expected to make a final decision about what to include on the ballot by July 21.
Five major candidates will be on the ballot for mayor in the general election in November: Mr. Mamdani; Mr. Sliwa, the winner of the Republican primary; and three independent candidates: Mayor Adams, former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and Jim Walden, a lawyer.
The move to open primaries would force all candidates to run in the primary and eliminate the option of waiting to run in the general election as an independent, as Mr. Adams and Mr. Walden have.
Jeffery C. Mays and Mihir Zaveri contributed reporting.
Emma G. Fitzsimmons is the City Hall bureau chief for The Times, covering Mayor Eric Adams and his administration.
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