Voters headed to the polls on Tuesday in several New York primaries, including congressional races that could shake up the political landscape in New York City and decide the competitors for a key swing seat ahead of the midterm elections.
In the city, the districts in contention are all safe seats for Democrats, meaning that the winners of the primaries are likely to win in November.
Some of the races could test the strength of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s influence on the direction of the party, as upstart progressives battle more establishment candidates for the opportunity to help shape the party’s response to President Trump’s agenda. Others have drawn attention because of the personalities involved — including a Trump-backed sticker tycoon running a provocative campaign upstate and a Kennedy heir vying for a Manhattan seat.
Here’s what to know.
When, Where and How to Vote
New York is a closed primary state, meaning Democrats and Republicans can vote only in their own parties’ primaries. Unaffiliated or independent voters cannot participate in primaries.
The early voting period in New York City began on Saturday, June 13, the same day that voter registration ended, and ran through Sunday, June 21.
According to Board of Elections preliminary figures, 172,743 people voted early.
On Tuesday, polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., which is also the last day to mail a ballot or drop it off.
Why Aren’t These Races Ranked Choice?
Ranked-choice voting, in which voters can cast votes for up to five candidates in order of preference, was first introduced to New Yorkers during the June primaries in 2021. The system played a key role in strategy during the Democratic mayoral primary last year, when Brad Lander and Zohran Mamdani cross-endorsed each other in an effort to defeat Andrew Cuomo.
But ranked-choice voting is only in use for primaries and special elections for local offices — specifically mayor, public advocate, city comptroller, borough president and City Council.
For statewide and House primaries, voters will get to pick only one candidate on their ballots.
What to Watch For
The three most competitive House races are most likely in New York’s 10th District, 12th District and 13th District.
In the 10th District in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn, the former city comptroller and Mamdani ally Brad Lander is challenging Dan Goldman, a two-term representative and high-profile Trump antagonist. Support for Israel has taken center stage in the progressive district, which has a large Jewish population: Supporters of Mr. Lander, who has called the war in Gaza a genocide, have attacked Mr. Goldman for his ties to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
In the 12th District, which spans Manhattan’s middle section from the Upper West Side and Upper East Side down to Chelsea and the East Village, the retirement of Representative Jerrold Nadler has left a vacant seat. Jack Schlossberg has attracted attention for his Kennedy connection and his oddball approach to campaigning, while the former Republican George T. Conway III has focused narrowly on his opposition to Mr. Trump, and the state lawmakers Micah Lasher and Alex Bores have duked it out in a race where most of the candidates are largely ideologically aligned.
Uptown in the 13th District, stretching from Upper Manhattan to parts of the Bronx, Mr. Mamdani was expected to endorse the five-term incumbent, Adriano Espaillat. But late last month, he shook up the race by throwing his support behind Darializa Avila Chevalier, an organizer and fellow democratic socialist. Ms. Avila Chevalier has taken heat for past social media posts — since deleted — in which she expressed support for abolishing prisons and defunding the police and questioned Israel’s right to exist.
Another race, in the Seventh District in gentrifying parts of Brooklyn and Queens, pits Antonio Reynoso, the progressive Brooklyn borough president, against Claire Valdez, a democratic socialist and relative newcomer to the State Assembly who entered the race at the mayor’s urging, and Julie Won, a City Council member who represents an overlapping district.
Progressives are also running against establishment candidates in the State Legislature, with challengers looking to unseat the Democratic Assembly members Jenifer Rajkumar, Stefani Zinerman, Jaime Williams and Erik Dilan. And some retirements, including those of Deborah Glick in the Assembly and Brian Kavanagh in the State Senate, have led to a mad scramble to fill open seats.
Perhaps the most closely watched contest will be a State Senate primary in Queens between Jessica Ramos, the incumbent, and Assemblywoman Jessica González-Rojas, who has been endorsed by Attorney General Letitia James and the Working Families Party.
After Ms. Ramos, who ran for mayor last year, angered many progressives by endorsing former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, one of her Democratic primary rivals, Ms. González-Rojas announced she would run against her. She quickly picked up endorsements from a number of progressive groups and labor unions.
Races Around the State
Voters will also choose their candidate for state comptroller. Thomas P. DiNapoli, a Democrat, has securely held the post for nearly two decades; he has never before had a primary challenger. Now, two newcomers running to his left — Raj Goyle and Drew Warshaw — are looking to capitalize on the energy Mr. Mamdani injected into politics across the state to unseat Mr. DiNapoli, the second-longest serving comptroller in state history.
Other key House races are taking place north of the city. In the 17th District, Democrats will choose their challenger to Mike Lawler, a Trump ally and one of the most vulnerable House Republicans. And in the right-leaning 21st District in upstate New York, Republicans are locked in a bitter primary fight to replace Representative Elise Stefanik.
The Mayor’s Role
As Mr. Mamdani looks to use his own popularity to secure more seats for left-leaning candidates, his support has been a boon for the campaigns of Ms. Valdez, Mr. Lander and Ms. Avila Chevalier. Taking advantage of the Knicks-induced fever sweeping across New York City, the mayor appeared in a basketball-themed campaign ad alongside his three picks that ran during the N.B.A. Finals, presenting the candidates by saying, “New York, we know anything is possible with a great team.”
“Get out and vote,” Mr. Mamdani says in the ad. “This is the team. This is our year.”
Nicholas Fandos, Grace Ashford and Benjamin Oreskes contributed reporting.
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