Each fall, Citizens Union gathers to honor exceptional New Yorkers whose leadership and service has strengthened our city. This year’s Gotham Greats celebration will take place on October 22, and I am honored to carry forward this storied tradition as we mark 128 years of good government advocacy.

We are proud to recognize this year’s Gotham Greats: Eric Gertler, Rose Gill, Betsy Gotbaum, and Dawn L. Smalls, whose accomplishments in business, government, and law exemplify dedication to the public good. We are also thrilled to present the Searchlight Award to journalist Michael Daly in recognition of his distinguished career and commitment to shining a light on the issues that matter most to New Yorkers.

The Gotham Greats embody the values of vision, accountability, and service – the very qualities Citizens Union has championed for more than a century. I hope you will join us to celebrate their extraordinary contributions. You can get your tickets here.

As we prepare to celebrate these leaders, we are diligently working to advance our century-old fight for reform. Just three days after our gala, early voting begins. Thanks to our advocacy, research and leadership, New Yorkers will have the chance to vote on a pivotal ballot measure to strengthen our local democracy.

In fact, we’re urging New Yorkers to flip their ballots and vote YES on all six ballot questions. Questions 2 through 5 will tackle our affordable housing crisis by modernizing and streamlining how we build and approve housing projects, and question 6 will shift our odd-year municipal elections to presidential years to boost voter turnout, a top priority for Citizens Union. To learn more about our positions on the ballot measures, read our full guide here.

Driving reforms to make our city stronger is not just our history, it is the future we are building together.

Best,
Grace Rauh

Executive Director, Citizens Union/Citizens Union Foundation
5BORO Institute at Citizens Union

POLICY UPDATES

Ballot Battles: Onward to November

We are thrilled New Yorkers will be able to vote on critical ballot measures in November, but it didn’t happen without a fight. Earlier this month, the future of the housing reform questions was very much in doubt. The NYC Board of Elections was considering blocking the questions from the ballot, a move that would have set a dangerous precedent and was far outside their scope of authority.

But Citizens Union sprang into action to defend New Yorkers’ right to decide on vital housing reforms at the ballot box. We quickly mobilized, making the case in the press and to the Board directly that rejecting the measures would have been illegal. Because of our advocacy and that of our partners, the Board followed the law, ensuring these proposals will go before voters as intended.

Read more: Grace Rauh sets the record straight in the New York Times.

Executive Director Grace Rauh makes the case directly to the Board of Elections

Citizens Union is urging New Yorkers to flip their ballots and vote YES on all six ballot questions: four pragmatic housing and land use reforms (questions 2 through 5), a statewide conservation measure (question 1), and—most importantly—the proposal we have strongly supported to move New York City’s local elections to even years (question 6). By aligning city elections with federal contests, we will boost voter turnout, ensure that the electorate is more representative of our city, and save taxpayers millions in administration costs.

Read our full analysis and recommendations on the ballot measures.

Watch our webinar with Philanthropy New York and GoVoteNYC, where we broke down the ballot measures and the charter reform process.

A Charter Commission Goes Dark

This year, New Yorkers saw two charter revision commissions in action. The 2025 Charter Revision Commission advanced important reforms—on housing and even-year elections—that will appear on the ballot this fall. Meanwhile, the City Council’s NYC Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy was weighing major proposals to enhance accountability in city government, including a process to remove a mayor for misconduct.

But since the summer, the Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy has gone silent—failing to publish its proposals or engage the public. This lack of transparency undermines its mission.

Citizens Union, together with fellow advocates, has called on the Commission to release its final report without delay and set a clear timeline for public outreach and ballot submissions. New Yorkers deserve openness and accountability in the charter revision process. Until then, we will continue to press for stronger anti-corruption safeguards and the transparent government New Yorkers expect and deserve.

Read our letter to the NYC Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy.

City Council Rushes Rule Changes

Earlier this month, with just one business day’s notice, the City Council advanced its biggest rules overhaul in more than a decade. While the 44-page package of potential rule changes included some positive reforms, it also called for changes that would have weakened the power of the minority party and left out key transparency measures entirely.

Citizens Union sounded the alarm. We testified at the Rules Committee and cautioned against making these sweeping changes without more time for a thorough review. Lawmakers heard us and multiple Council members spoke about their concerns with the sweeping changes. In the end, the Council canceled its planned vote on the new rules. We are always keeping watch, and we will continue our fight for fair rules and transparency in government.

Read our full testimony.

Citizens Union Calls for Stronger Ethics Reforms

Citizens Union recently testified before the New York State Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government (COELIG) at its annual public hearing. The Commission has just completed a comprehensive review of the state’s ethics laws—an important step toward long-overdue statewide reform.

Policy Director Ben Weinberg addressing COELIG Commissioners

At the hearing, Policy Director Ben Weinberg urged the Commission to take bolder action to address the ties between lobbying and campaign contributions that erode public confidence in government. We called on the commission to support lowering contribution limits for lobbyists and requiring disclosure of fundraising activities by lobbying firms. We also made the case for establishing a “cooling-off” period to prevent campaign consultants from immediately turning political connections into lobbying access.

These reforms would help slow the revolving door between consulting firms and state agencies, curb the influence of money in politics, and restore trust in government.

The View from the Inside: Ranked Choice Voting

Ranked Choice Voting has changed the game—that’s what we heard from advocates who fought for the reform and the candidates who competed under the new system. Citizens Union was pleased to co-host a panel on the transformative policy with Common Cause/NY, the NYU McSilver Institute, the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, and the CUNY Graduate Center. Thank you to everyone who shared their View from the Inside!

Grace Rauh moderates candiates panel

If you missed it, you can watch the panel discussion here

5BORO Brings Business Leaders Into the Child Care Conversation

As child care continues to be a critical issue for New Yorkers, the 5BORO Institute at Citizens Union is focused on bringing business leaders into the conversation to help drive toward policy solutions. We were thrilled to co-host a breakfast this month with the Partnership for NYC and Moms First to convene leaders from across sectors in New York City. We discussed the critical role that accessible, affordable child care plays in a healthy and thriving city, and the opportunity that business leaders and large employers have to be part of the policy change.

L-R: Grace Rauh, Citizens Union Executive Director; Kathryn Wylde, President and CEO of Partnership for NYC; Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of Moms First; Marissa Shorenstein, Board Chair of Citizens Budget Commission